Nature's Cruelty: Sequel to Earth Shattering
by Slytherin-Goddess214
Summary: Mother Nature has no favorites, not even for newlyweds. *Photo Credit: KrystalHearts2 * Dramione
1. Chapter 1- Prologue

**AN: Sorry for the delay everyone; I just got married on Sunday and things have been hectic! But I am back and ready to work on this sequel to Earth Shattering :) And after this story is done I will begin working on a new Time Travel story. Also I am going to take my time on this story and make sure it is edited well enough to post so I will no longer be posting every day, but I will try to get the next chapter out within a few days. Thank you all for your love and patience and I hope you enjoy this story!**

Chapter 1- Prologue

 **Sunday, July 2** **nd** **, 2006 12:36pm London, England; UK**

"Alright, here we go." Kingsley Shacklebolt stated as he turned around and held up two wristbands. "Now, seeing as you both have never traveled to another country before, I will explain what these are and how they work. First, these are what we call _Magicis Protectore Eius_ ; which translate to Magical Protectors. We just simply call them, Magic Bands. Due to the nature that is our world today, some countries, mainly North America, do not allow foreigners to use disapparition and a witch and or wizard's magic is limited."

"Why is that?" Draco asked with his arms folded, while he stood next to his new bride in the Minster for Magic's office.

"Well," Kingsley continued "thanks to a few terrorist invading their homeland back in 2001, travel to the United States was almost impossible for a while; even for us. It was not long ago that they finally re-opened their magical boarders, after closing them a few years, but, they have strict rules and guidelines, protocols that visitors must abide by."

"That doesn't sound like much fun." Draco turned to his wife "Why are we going to America for our honeymoon if we are going to be restricted on what we can and can't do?"

Hermione opened her mouth to say something but Kingsley cut in.

"You can still have fun my good man; your magic is just limited." He chuckled softly and Draco let out a huff. "You cannot perform magic in front of muggles, similar to our own laws, and only certain spells can be cast when need be; simple ones to help you clean up a mess, shrink things or light a small fire for example."

"So why is disapparition banned?"

"To protect their people from terrorist bouncing all over their country, making it hard to not only catch them, but to find them as well."

"But we aren't, what did you call them, terrorists?" Draco raised a brow "We are just a newlywed couple going on our honeymoon."

"They don't know that and you have no proof that you are not going to harm them. You are an ex Death Eater, Mr. Malfoy, which in muggle terms, is a terrorist."

"It makes sense, Draco." Hermione turned her head to him "They are scared and are still at war with the Middle East. I am sure our government would do the same thing if someone hijacked a bunch of planes and flew them into buildings, killing thousands of people. I understand where they are coming from."

"So why go at all? Why can't we just go to the Maldives or Japan or something? Why America?"

"Because I always wanted to see the Pacific Ocean an-"

"You can see the Pacific Ocean from Japan, Hermione. You can even see it from South America."

"The ocean is not the only reason I want to go." she stomped her foot.

Draco relaxed his shoulders and softened his features.

"Okay Love. What other reason do you want to go?"

"I want to see the San Diego Zoo."

"The Zoo? Really? Hermione, do you know how many zoos are in the world that we can visit? Bloody hundreds."

"But that Zoo, is one of the most famous in the world, with over 4,000 animals and more than 800 species. Plus the maritime climate is well suited to many of the animals and almost all of the exhibits are open-air. They are extremely active in conservation and preservation of animal life AND many species are bred in captivity for release into their native habitats. It is everything I stand for, Draco. They help animals and take extremely great care in them. I want to see that. They also have all sorts of other activities we can do that I want to try. There are concerts with live performers and car shows; I am sure you will love to see-"

"I am not really a big fan of cars after last year's incident" He cut in.

"Trust me, you will love it. They also have Museums, craft beer tours, historical parks, we can even dine with Orcas at Sea World!" she exclaimed happily.

"Alright." Draco held a hand up and chuckled "You had me at craft beer tours."

"Really? We can still go?" she turned fully and grabbed his arm with both hands in excitement.

"Yeah, we can still go. If you are that excited about it then I can sacrifice using some of my magic to make you happy."

Hermione started jumping up and down with joy and Draco couldn't help but smile knowing he was the one to make her happy.

"But we are staying in the best Villa, you hear? We are going to stay on the beach and we are going to watch the sun set every night and rise every morning, do I make myself clear?" he claimed in a stern voice.

Hermione smiled widely as she looked at him.

"Whatever you want." She stated through her large grin before leaning in and kissed his lips quickly.

"Well, now that that is settled." Kingsley smiled and looked at the duo. "Here are your bands." He held out two clear rubber looking bands.

"So how do these sodding things work?" Draco asked taking them from the Minister.

"Once placed on your wrist, they will not be able to be removed unless it is by an Auror or an official of the US Ministry. It will act as a passport of sorts. Allowing you into the country and it will allow you to keep your wand on you."

"They take your wand away?" Draco asked confused.

"The US makes their wizards and witches carry wand permits; since the UK does not, the band will be your permit."

"This seems like a lot of bullocks we have to go through just to visit for two weeks."

"I am sorry but it is necessary…Now , because of the imposed threat they had to deal with a few years ago, you must check in at the Magical Congress of the United States of America, MACUSA for sort, before getting a port key to your destination. It is run by a President; closely resembling their muggle counterparts. They will-"

"Oh we won't be taking a port key once we get there." Hermione cut in "Draco has agreed and we are going to fly from New York to California." She grinned "We will take the international port key you are providing us to get to the East Coast and then take a 08:00am muggle airplane the rest of the way."

"It's a way to experience it all." Draco added sarcastically with an eye roll. "I would rather take the broom or port key if you ask me…but taking a muggle plane is what is going to make her happy."

"You have already learned the ways of becoming a wondrous husband, Mr. Malfoy." Kingsley winked "A happy wife means a happy life."

"Yeah well, if she is not happy then I'm not happy. No one really wants to experience a duel between us during a fight. Neither of us would win and the battle would end up tearing down a building. So I have learned to pick my battles carefully." Draco smirked as he nudged his wife with his shoulder.

"I agree to that statement." Kingsley lightly laughed. "I have seen you both duel. You are both two of the brightest people I know. I am honestly surprised neither of you became Aurors; although, I do understand why. Anyway," he opened the top drawer of his desk and pulled out a glass bottle. "This is your port key. It is set to go off tomorrow at 11:00am. You better get your beauty rest because New York is five hours behind us and California is three hours behind them. You should arrive on the East Coast at 06:00am and your check in with their government, should only take about 45 minutes or so. I am sure your will be able to catch your morning flight in time. These are also your ID cards; for if you want to drink or do an activity that requires it. It shows that you are both over twenty-one years of age, which is their legal drinking limit."

"Thank you Minister Shackelbolt." Hermione stated, taking the glass bottle and cards from him.

"You are most welcome, Mrs. Malfoy. I do hope you enjoy your stay." He began to sit down at his desk while Hermione and Draco turned to leave. "Oh," He raised a finger "and do be careful. I hear earthquakes are a major thing in that particular state."

Hermione turned and lightly smiled.

"We will be in San Diego; that city is not on the San Andreas Fault Line. We will be okay. Thank you again, Minister." She nodded her head and turned to leave.

As Hermione walked out the door, Draco stood glued to the floor as he stared at his wife with wide eyes.

"I'm sorry…Did you say earthquakes?" he asked with skepticism. "We already battled tornadoes; I really would rather not experience an earthquake too."

Hermione stopped in her tracks and turned to face him. She chuckled at his expression before walking back to him. Gently grabbing his arm, she began leading him out of the office.

"San Diego doesn't get them and if they do, it is just a small tremor felt from another city. California rarely even has large earthquake anymore. The last time a quake was ever above a 7.0 magnitude, was in 1992." She slipped an arm through his, while they continued walking to the room that contained the floo network. "Besides, it could be worse; at least it's not a volcano or a hurricane."

"Yeah, that doesn't really make it any better."

"We will be just fine, Draco." She chuckled "I promise."


	2. Chapter 2- Flight

**AN: I forgot to mention last chapter, that this story will have longer chapters than its predecessor. I have not decided yet if the story itself will be longer due to just playing this story mostly by ear, but the chapters definitely will be almost doubled!**

 ***WARNING- MATURE CONTENT***

Chapter 2- Flight

 **Monday, July 3rd, 2006 07:24am JFK International Airport- New York, NY; United States**

' ** _United Airlines 1144 for San Diego California, now boarding at gate 7 for First Class passengers. I repeat; United Airlines 1144 for San Diego California, now boarding at Gate 7 for First Class passengers.'_**

Draco looked up from his book and glanced at the gate he and Hermione were supposed to be at.

"Was that us?" he asked Hermione, who was enthralled in her own book.

"Yeah, I just…want to finish…this chapter…aaaand…done." She replied, closing her book.

She held out her hand to take Draco's book from him, and placed it in her carry-on bag that was spelled with an undetectable extension charm. Standing up, Draco took the bag from her and reached for her hand. The couple then walked to Gate 7 and waited in the short line.

"Are you nervous?" she asked looking up at him.

"No…What makes you say that?" he asked taking a slight gulp.

"Because you look nervous and you're sweating a little. Plus, you told me yourself that you have never been on a muggle plane before."

"I'm not nervous. It's just hot in here."

"It's okay to be nervous, Draco; a lot of people are afraid of flying."

Draco turned his head and looked at his wife with a dead set expression.

"Hermione…I was the Slytherin Seeker for four years, remember? I am also the owner of the fastest broom in the world right now; it hasn't even been released to the public yet. I promise you, I am not afraid of flying."

"Yes, but flying on a broom that you can control, is a lot different than flying in a metal tin can made by muggles; a machine you have no control over, in a country where our magic is limited."

"I didn't think about it that way; but calling it a metal tin can, is not going to help me feel better about this decision…If I was nervous, which I'm not."

"I'm not judging you, you know? I am okay with flying but I'm still afraid to get on a broom." she smiled.

"Unless it's to save me?" he raised a brow.

"Yes-wait, what?"

"Potter told me all about it last year when you were in the hospital. You practically bragged about showing off in front of me."

"No I didn't." she removed her hand from him.

"Not what I heard." He joked "I heard that once you figured out you were in love with me you went back and thought about everything I ever said or did. About how I lied to help you out at the Manor, when I threw Potter my wand so he could, how did he say it, oh yeah, defeat evil; he also shook his fist in the air like he was triumphant or something…And his personal favorite story just so happened to be saving me in the Room of Requirement, giving you the chance to ride a broom in front of the Slytherin Seeker!" he shook a fist in the air. "His words, not mine." He finished as he lowered his hand.

Hermione's face went white as a ghost as she looked at her husband in embarrassment.

"He…he told you all of that?"

Draco let out a chuckle and moved to wrap his arms around her waist.

"I'm not judging you, Love. I am pretty awesome." He pulled at his suit jacket with a hand, like he was superior.

Hermione play smacked his chest and turned out of his arms.

"If it makes you feel any better, I honestly didn't even notice you on the broom."

"It doesn't." she crossed her arms and began to pout.

"Well, I was a little preoccupied with not dying so…But if you would like another chance to show me…" he trailed off.

"First let's see how you handle a muggle plane before I even think about getting on another broom. I will consider letting you take me up one day; if you can contain your nerves about this."

"I'm not ner-"

"Tickets please." A flight attendant cut in.

Hermione winked at him before she handed over the tickets, and waited for the attendant to scan them. Once the attendant was done, she handed the tickets back.

"Please enjoy your flight and thank you for choosing United Airways." She smiled.

Making their way down the Passenger Boarding Bridge, Draco took in deep breaths as his nerves began to quiver inside his body. His palms began to feel clammy and he quickly wiped them on his suit pants so that Hermione would not notice.

Stepping into the plane, he looked around as beads of sweat began to form at the top of his hair line.

"This way." Hermione stated, pulling the sleeve of his jacket to the front of the plane.

He followed her hesitantly, as they made their way into first class. He tried to take in the luxury accommodations; the cushioned black leather reclining chairs sitting side by side, with large TV's mounted in front of them. The fluffy white pillows sitting on each chair and the folded in tray stand were something he normally would have enjoyed but right now, the statement Hermione made earlier about being trapped in a tin can, made him scared shit-less. He wouldn't tell her that though, nor would he allow it to be shown.

Hermione took the bag from him and began lifting it over her head to put it in some type of compartment above them, but all Draco could focus on, was the window displaying the runway outside.

As she finished placing their carry-on luggage into the overhead compartment, Hermione turned to face him and her face fell to a worried expression.

"Draco? Are you okay?" she asked touching his arm.

The sudden touch startled him slightly and he pulled his attention away from the window.

"What?...Yeah, yeah I'm fine." He answered, trying to sound calm.

"You're not fine. Here take a seat, I'll go and see if a flight attendant can bring us some water."

Draco nodded his head and took the seat furthest away from the window. Once Hermione left him, he took in a deep breath and closed his eyes; trying to concentrate on anything but being trapped in the blasted muggle contraption.

After few seconds, a shadow loomed over his face and he slowly opened his eyes; expecting to see his wife. But a woman he didn't recognize, wearing a formal business skirt and white blouse, was instead standing before him.

"I'm so sorry to disturb you." the woman stated in an American accent. "My name is Bethany Sands. I noticed as I was boarding, that you seemed a little…out of it. Are you alright?" she asked placing a tender hand on Draco's arm.

Looking down at her hand, he quickly looked back up to the woman and let out a breath.

"I'm fine, thank you."

"Oh, you're English!" she stated in excitement.

"Well, British actually."

"Oh how charming." She smiled widely and began rubbing her fingers up his arm. "I always wanted to meet a real British man. Are you here alone?"

"No I-"

"Wonderful!" she exclaimed, throwing Draco off a bit. "I'm alone too." She winked before crouching down to his level. "You are very handsome, you know? Do you come from money?" She continued to rub her fingers up and down his arms as she rested her chin on her hand and placed her elbow on his arm rest. "I don't mean to be so forward," she continued before he had a chance to answer "but I just can't help myself. What do you say you join me later…We can both partake in…a few games, I am sure you would enjoy; might even help sooth your discomfort."

Draco looked around to see if he could spot Hermione but she was nowhere to be found and he was desperate for her to return. Realizing the woman was hitting on him, he decided to try and pursued her to back away from him.

"Like chess?" he asked playing dumb.

Bethany giggled and to Draco, she reminded him a lot of Pansy when he first met her. Overly bubbly, extremely forward, and acted like someone who was trying a little too hard to impress him.

"No silly," she lightly tapped him with her fingers. "Like the Mile High Club." She winked.

"They have clubs on a plane?" he asked confused. "Can you stop touching me please?" he asked pulling his arms back.

The women let off a small laugh as she pulled her hand back and lifted her head up.

"My…apologies, Mr…?"

"Malfoy." He answered firmly as he looked at the women in a strange way.

He was confused about why she thought it was okay to approach him; however, he was a little interested in what the Mile High Club was, and if he could use it as an excuse to get away from the woman who was invading his personal space.

"Mr. Malfoy…I like that name. It's…different. I like different. So what do you say? Join me later? I can make it worth your while." She flirted with a wink.

"No thanks." He smirked "I am fine right here."

"Then I can join you here." She smiled and fluttered her eyelashes.

"Eh hem." Someone cleared their throat behind him.

Quickly turning in his seat, he spotted Hermione holding two bottles of water in her hands and giving Bethany a death stare even he was terrified of. Bethany stood up and gave Hermione a disgusted look as she placed her hands on Draco's shoulders.

"Am I in your way…Stewardess?"

Hermione's eyes widened like she couldn't believe the woman just assumed she worked on the plane. But Bethany paid her no mind and moved to take the seat next to him. Once she sat down, she began looking at her finger nails as if she was above everyone, while both Hermione and Draco, looked at the woman in utter disbelief.

Shaking the shock away, Draco looked back to Hermione in confusion, but Hermione's face was now red with anger.

"Excuse me, but who the hell are you?"

Bethany looked back up to Hermione and once again gave her a disgust look.

"Who the hell are you to talk to me that way? Don't you have like some peanuts or something to pass out?"

Hermione pinched her lips in and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry, we haven't been properly introduced. My name is Hermione Malfoy, this man's-"

"Sister?" Bethany finished. "Well I am sure your brother will be just fine without you for the duration of this trip.

"I believe, _MY_ husband, would be just fine if I stayed and you left."

Bethany scuffed and rolled her eyes as Hermione moved her left hand to Draco's shoulder, to show off her large engagement ring and wedding band.

"Right. Like any man would marry someone so dull." Bethany looked down at the rings "Did you buy that at the gift shop?"

That was enough to throw Hermione over the edge and Draco knew, what was about to happen next. As hot as it would be to see his wife win in a fight, he didn't want the fight to happen before they even left the ground.

"Look, lady." He began "Hermione is my wife and we are currently on our honeymoon, so if you could just leave us alone…"

"Hermione?" Bethany laughed "Wow, what a name!"

"Did it hurt?" Hermione asked out of nowhere, as she handed Draco the water bottles.

Draco raised a brow but he had a feeling, wherever Hermione was going with that question, he knew it would be good.

"Did what hurt?" Bethany asked with venom on her lips.

"When you fell out of someone's arse and into the toilet, you piece of shit!"

Both Draco and Bethany's jaws dropped but neither one of them had time process the extent of Hermione's burn, before Hermione reached over Draco and pulled the woman from her chair by her hair.

Bethany let out a cry as his wife pulled her into the aisle and dragged her away from their seats. Draco got out of his seat and watched as she finally let go when they reached the entrance to First Class. Turning back around to walk back to him, Bethany straightened herself up and rushed at Hermione; but Hermione was quicker. Pulling out her wand, she quickly turned back around and pointed it at the woman's throat; causing her to stop, mid tackle.

"What? Are you going to poke me with that flimsy stick?" Bethany asked in a chuckle.

"I'll do you one better." Hermione smirked, before swiftly lowering her wand and raising a fist; landing it directly into Bethany's nose.

Letting out another cry, Bethany held on to her nose as she stumbled backwards and instinctively, Draco reached for his own nose as he remembered when he was punched.

"How about you don't hit on other people's husbands and your face will stay intact, you daft bimbo!"

With that, Hermione turned back around, marching angrily passed Draco, and sat down in her seat. Bethany rushed out of the front of the plane and Draco let out a chuckle before moving to sit back down.

"Bloody fucking brilliant, my Love." He claimed as he leaned over and kissed his wife on the cheek.

"I went too far." She sighed, leaning back.

"Are you kidding me?" he exclaimed "That was fucking hot! And personally, I am very glad it was not my nose that got hit this time." he sat back and looked up at the ceiling of the plane with a large smile planted on his face.

Hermione let out a small laugh and Draco moved his hand to hold hers.

"I married the best witch in the world. I am so proud of you."

Letting off a blush, Hermione turned her head and kissed him on the cheek before settling back down in her chair.

After a few minutes of reliving his wife defending what was hers, another woman came up to them as the plane began to fill with more people.

"Pardon my intrusion." The flight attendant began "I wanted to let you know that we have just received a complaint from a woman, claiming that a couple in First Class, assaulted her. Seeing as you are the only couple up here so far, I still have to ask if it was you."

Draco glanced to Hermione before looking back at the attendant.

"That _woman_ , came on to me and insulted my wife. She then took her seat and when asked to leave, she refused. I apologize if it caused any trouble. We certainly did not ask for it." Draco explained.

"Oh, please don't apologize. We have had problems with her in the past." Draco raised a brow. "Let's just say, she is a few fries short of a happy meal; she likes to dress up as a business woman and hit on any man she deems attractive and wealthy in First Class. We have had to remove her from many planes for causing scenes, but since she technically pays for each ticket, she hasn't really done anything illegal. Officially, I am supposed to come over here and tell you to please not cause any more disturbances; however, off the record, the staff of United Airway that has had to deal with her, would like to thank the woman who took matters into her own hands…Seeing as we are not allowed to show hostility." She smiled.

Hermione's jaw dropped and Draco turned to grin at her.

"I uh, well, I-"

"What my wife is trying to say is, you are welcome." He turned back to the attendant.

The stewardess continued to smile and nodded her head.

"It has been a pleasure. Please do not cause any more disturbances and thank you for choosing to fly with us."

Walking away, Draco looked back to his wife and smiled.

"Looks like you defended more than just me today."

"I…I guess so." She bit her lower lip and leaned back.

' **Ladies and Gentlemen! My name is Drew Begum and I am your Chief Flight Attendant. On behalf of Captain Mark and the entire crew, welcome aboard United Airway flight 1144, non-stop service from New York, New York to San Diego, California. The cabin doors are now closed and we are ready for take-off. Our flight duration time will be 5 hours and 20 minutes…'**

"Five hours?" Draco asked as the chief attendant continued over the loud speakers.

"Five hours is nothing." Hermione answered "From here to Hawaii is about eleven plus hours; maybe more depending on stops to refuel and weather conditions. But we can watch movies and sleep to pass the time."

"I guess…That just seems like a really long time."

"We will be fine. We have books and plenty of movie choices."

"If you say so. We could get there a lot faster on a broom."

The flight attendant continued to speak and Draco listened as the man described things he never heard or seen before in his life. He was fascinated by the life vest and how it held so many little gadgets, but what apparently made Hermione laugh at him, was his obsession with wanting to try the air masks that would fall from the ceiling in case of emergency.

Once the plane began to move in reverse though, was when his nerves kicked back in. He wouldn't let Hermione know though. He was too proud to let anyone know just how much the muggle contraption terrified him.

At lift off, he grabbed a hold of Hermione's hand tightly and closed his eyes. It wasn't until the plane leveled and the seat belt sign turned off, that he finally took a breath.

"Draco…Draco, you can let go of my hand now." Hermione announced calmly.

Draco released her hand and she quickly shook it to get the blood flowing again.

"Do you want to watch something; to take your mind off the flight?"

He shook his head no and kept his eyes closed.

"Just breath…Think about something else."

"Like what?" he asked, gripping the arm rest, making his knuckles go white.

"Like…Like me naked." She smiled.

Draco opened his eyes wide and looked at her with shock.

"I…I can do that." he smirked. "I can definitely do that."

An hour later, Draco was finally calm and deep into his book, when the thought back on the Mile High Club; and he wondered just what it was."

"Hey Love?" He questioned, setting his book down. "Did you know they have clubs on this thing?"

"What?" She asked, not looking up from her book.

"That…crazy lady, from earlier, she said there was a thing called the Mile High Club. What is it about?"

Hermione looked at him dead in the eye before she burst out laughing.

"What?" he asked confused "What is so funny?"

"She…She really asked you to join?" Hermione continued to laugh.

"What is it?" he questioned, now embarrassed for asking.

Hermione laugh slowed down as she wiped a stray tear from her face.

"I'll tell you later." She shook her head and let out a slight chuckle.

"Forget it…If you are going to laugh at me, then I don't want to know." He raised his book back up and continued to read.

"I'm going to go to the loo." Hermione stated still giggling while standing up and setting her book on the seat.

She grabbed her purse before stepping over his legs, which were propped up from the recliner. Turning around, she winked at him before heading off down the aisle to the bathroom. Draco lowered his head back down and instead focused on his book.

"You are supposed to follow her." an elderly man claimed, sitting in a seat across the aisle next to him.

Draco lowered his book again and turned his head to face the man.

"I beg your pardon?" he asked with a raised brow.

The old man chuckled and shook his head.

"You are supposed to follow her…to the bathroom." He smiled while pointing.

"Why would I follow her to the loo?"

"To join the club, of course." He let out a small laugh "Trust me, you want to join."

"I don't understand. What is this club?" he asked more intrigued.

"Let's just say, back in my day, it was the best club to be a part of." He winked "Go on now…follow her."

Draco slowly lowered his book and set it down on top of Hermione's as he gave the man a strange look. But he kicked the foot rest back into position and stood up. Once he made his way to the bathroom, he looked around confused before knocking lightly. Hermione opened the door and quickly grabbed the front of his shirt; dragging him inside.

"Whoa! What the hell Hermio-"

She reached up and slapped a hand over his mouth; cutting his sentence short. He looked at her confused and she raised a finger to her lips to tell him to be quiet, before removing her hand from his mouth.

"What the hell are we doing in the loo?" he whispered.

"You wanted to know what the Mile High Club is, right? Well I am going to show you." she whispered back.

"In a loo? I thought this thing would be somewhere, I don't know, less cramped and with more people. Is it a magic thing? Like how toilets are one way of getting in the ministry?"

"Draco," she giggled "The Mile High Club, is having sex in an aircraft while it's in the air."

"I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"You heard me." She smiled widely "So…Do you want to join or not?"

"I uh…I-well- um yes, yes I definitely do." He stuttered in shock. "But uh, this is a little small of an area."

"The smaller, the better." She grinned as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

Resting his hands on her hips, he raised brow, still slightly bewildered.

"People actually do this? Aren't they afraid of getting caught?...Or injuring themselves? Someone could get a major cramp in here."

Hermione chuckled as she lowered her head before looking back up into his grey eyes; moving her hands to his chest.

"The fun…is the risk of getting caught. That and the vibrations of the plane are said to heighten the experience."

"I'll ignore that pun but let's move on to how you became so…unconcerned about repercussions of getting caught. Have I been rubbing off on you?"

"No." she giggled "Maybe…I don't know, but are you going to kiss me or not? The longer we are in here, the more likely people are going suspect that we are, how would Snape put it, up to no good."

"Ugh, please don't bring Snape into this. I would rather not think about my dead Godfather while fucking you, thanks."

"Sorry, I didn't really think about-"

"Hermione," he cut in with a small smile "Shut up and let me kiss my beautiful wife."

As Hermione smiled in joy of her new title, Draco lightly moved his hands up her sides while he leaned down; placing his lips on her soft ones. Hermione lifted her hands and tenderly ran her fingers through his hair, causing him to become extremely aroused. Pressing deeper into her, Draco pushed her back into the wall while raising a hand to cup her face, before turning her slightly and pressed her into sink. Lifting her up, he placed her on the counter, but never once broke contact with her lips as they fought each other for dominance.

The kiss heated up as he lifted her shirt and placed his hand on her bra covered breast. Hermione began trying to rip his jacket off of him, so he pulled back from her for a moment to remove the item and threw it on the ground.

Quickly rushing back to her, he cupped her face again as his other hand danced around her body; wanting to touch everywhere he possibly could. Her hands landed on his belt, and as she undid it, he pulled her off the counter and turned her around.

Kissing at her neck, she tilted her head to the side and reached an arm up, wrapping it around the back of his neck. He continued to kiss and nip her skin in desperation while he undid her jeans and pulled them and her knickers, down to her knees.

Pulling away from her as she leaned on the sink, breathing hard, he unzipped his fly and unbuttoned his pants before pulling out his dick. He moved back to kissing her neck and after a few seconds, Hermione turned her head and connected her lips to his.

As they kissed with deep, invigorating, passion, he bent her over slightly breaking away from her mouth, and spread her legs as he ran himself against her bare skin. Not wanting to wait any longer, Draco loosened his knees and slowly eased into her. He couldn't help letting out a deep moan, as he felt her warm wet walls wrap around him like a vice. He loved how tight she was and he loved that she was going to always be his. He couldn't get enough of her and all he wanted to do was just stay inside her forever; drowning in her while refusing to ever take another breath.

Hermione leaned back up and wrapped her hand back around his neck as he began thrusting hard, but gentle at the same time. His whole body felt like it was floating on air, which technically he knew it was, since they were flying in the sky. But it was a feeling he never felt before. As the vibrations of the aircraft echoed through him, all he craved at that moment was to just let go and let his body take control. Although the confines of the bathroom were small, that is exactly what he did.

As he began pounding harder into her, Hermione started moaning louder. Instantly and almost instinctively, he covered her mouth with his hand but did not stop the movements he was making. She felt so amazing to him; he needed more.

Leaning her gently back over the counter, he reached his hands up under her shirt and cupped both her breast; squeezing lightly as he desperately craved her more. Draco began pushing harder and faster into her and he felt his release brewing within him. Not wanting to cum before her, he let go of her right breast and moved his hand down her side. Placing his fingers between her legs, he started playing with her clit; rubbing in fast but soft circles, making her walls begin to clench around him as she let off a loud moan.

The sensation was extraordinary and he could no longer hold back as he quickly cupped the hand on her breast around her mouth again. Spilling into her, Draco let off a deep moan into her neck as he continued to fill her.

Every inch of his body trembled at the glory of his release and his breath was fast and heavy. Holding on to her for a little bit longer, they both relaxed as they rode out their orgasms. He didn't want to leave her though, but he knew he had to eventually pull out. Taking a few more moments of enjoying her warmth, he finally pulled himself out of her and brought out his wand.

Cleaning them both up, they fixed their clothing before Hermione turned and draped her arms around his neck.

"Best…club…ever." He smirked and then leaned down to slowly peck her lips.

"We should probably head back...one at a time." she pulled her arms down and placed her hands on his chest.

"Uh, so do you think they know? Because, it is going to be really awkward walking back, if they do." He stated pointing to the door.

"Merlin, I hope not." She expressed looking towards the door.

"Well," he leaned down and planted a soft kiss on her forehead "here goes nothing." he let out a breath and turned to open the door.

As soon as Draco stepped out, he opened the curtain that semi-hid the stall and all eyes of first class landed on him. Some were giving him dirty looks, while others were smiling brightly; knowing just what occurred. He hurriedly rushed to his seat, riddled with embarrassment and sat down. Quickly grabbing his book off of Hermione's chair, he opened it and covered his face; hoping people would stop looking at him eventually.

"Told you." the elderly man from earlier stated with a smile.

Draco gave off a smirk and shook his head before going back to reading.

A few minutes later, a white mist began to blanket the cabin, but no one seemed to notice. It only lasted for a few seconds before it disappeared and another man stood up and walked to the bathroom. Draco watched as he opened the door and stepped inside; almost as if no one was in there. He began to worry and wonder just where his wife was and if she was still in the bathroom with that new man.

As he stared at the stall with anger brewing in his eyes, he felt a small hand rest upon his right arm. He turned to look at who was touching him but all he saw was an empty seat with Hermione's book. However, the book looked to be sinking into the chair and then suddenly, it shifted off the seat and floated in midair before coming to rest on its side; sitting against the armchair.

Draco's eyes widened in surprise and he whipped his head around to see if anyone else saw what he just did. No one else seemed to be paying attention to him anymore. In fact everyone, except a select few, seemed to suddenly be sleeping; so he looked back at the chair and it was now filled with a smiling Hermione.

"What the fuck?" he exclaimed in a whisper as he jumped in his seat. "Damn it Hermione, you scared the ever loving piss out of me!"

"Sorry." She whispered back as she tucked something into her handbag "I realized after seeing you stunned at the loo door that everyone heard us. So I had to find a way to sneak out."

"And how prey tell, did you manage that?"

"Harry let me borrow his cloak, for in case of emergencies and I had brought some Forget Me Now's that George gave me from his shop a few months back."

"What the hell is a Forget Me Now?" he asked thrown back.

"A Forget Me Now? Oh, it's a small stone that when tossed, releases a faint white mist. Anyone that is magical won't be affected. It is mainly for muggles. It's a mix of the bewitched sleep charm and the Obliviate charm, but is temporary and it can be used in large areas. It puts muggles to sleep for about fifteen to twenty minutes and when they wake up, they will forget what happened in the last few minutes before being knocked out."

"Bloody hell! How long does it last?"

"About three hours." She replied shrugging her shoulders.

"And George Weasley made it?"

"Yeah, he made it a few months ago and I actually helped with the process. I…I Obliviated my parents before the war, and it was so strong that I almost couldn't reverse it. Apparently I am really good at it, so George wanted to create something that could be used in mass crowds to help with cover ups; in case magic in used in front a bunch of muggles. He made temporary ones and permanent ones. The one I tossed is just a prototype but the test results are through the roof, so I brought some just in case. "

"Huh…Is there anything you're not good at?"

"No…not really- well sewing…I've gotten better but I'm still not great at it."

"Well," he leaned over and kissed her lips "You are still perfect to me."

Hermione blushed slightly as Draco lifted his book and went back to reading. Taking her hand in his, he saw her out of the corner of his eye, turn to look out the window. And all he could think about, was how every day, he found a new way to fall in love with her.


	3. Chapter 3- News

Chapter 3- News

 **Tuesday, July 4** **th** **, 2006 12:05pm**

"How did we get here Hermione?" Draco asked with a fallen face "I can't do this anymore, I'm done. I'm sorry but I can't take this anymore."

Hermione let out a laugh as she hunched over holding her stomach.

"You just have to toss the ring on the bottle, Draco; it's not that hard. Little kids are able to do it!" she exclaimed through her laughter.

"This game is utter bullocks! People are staring and it is making me uncomfortable. Why can't I just buy you the giant bear?"

"Because, it is more fun to play the game and earn the prize. You can't just buy everything in life." she stated touching his shoulder gently.

"Sure I can; watch…Excuse me." He called out the man attending the game. "I will give you $20.00 for that large stuffed bear up there in the corner."

"Draco!" Hermione grabbed his arm and pulled him away before looking back to the man. "I'm sorry, he was just kidding."

"No worries." The man replied with a smile "Besides, that bear cost about $50.00 anyway. Most people spend that, and more, just trying to win one of the small prizes."

"I'll give you a $100." Draco cut in as he released his arm from Hermione's grasp.

"Draco!"

"Done." The man claimed with a large grin before reaching up to grab the bear that was half the size of Hermione.

Draco pulled out a crisp one hundred dollar bill and handed it to the man as he took the bear from him. Handing it to Hermione, he smiled brightly as he took her hand and began walking down the busy boardwalk.

"You didn't have to do that, you know?" she claimed hugging the bear close to her chest. "You over paid for it and it was not necessary."

"I know…But I wanted to. You are my wife after all, and my wife deserves everything she wants."

"You don't have to buy everything for me, Draco. I don't want you to think you have to buy my love."

Draco stopped walking instantly and turned to her.

"Is that what you think I'm doing?" he asked as people pushed passed him. "You think I am buying you things because it will make you love me more? Hermione, that is not why I am doing it."

"Then why are you? I get it; you are filthy rich and can buy an island if you really wanted to. You don't have to flaunt your money at me. I am not a materialistic woman."

"It's _our_ money first of all," He began letting out a sigh "second, I know you're not, and third, I am doing it because I love you and I want to give you the world. I am not doing to flaunt our money or because I think it will make you never leave me. I have the money so why not spend it on you? It's not like I am really doing anything else with it besides funding SPEW. My company is back on track after last year, and we have more money than I know what to do with. Let me just spoil you, okay? It makes me happy."

"You had to throw that in didn't you?" she questioned, releasing his hand and holding on to the bear with both arms.

"Throw what in?" he asked placing his hands in his pockets and let out another sigh.

"That it makes you happy?"

"Because it does; do you want me to lie to you and say it doesn't?"

"No…I just…I want you to be happy, but I am not for just throwing money around like it's nothing."

"Hermione, Love." Draco began, moving closer to her and taking out a hand to cup her freckled face. "It is just a teddy bear. It is not like I bought you a boat or something;" he looked out to the water "which isn't really a bad idea, now that I think about it."

"Draco!" she lightly slapped his chest.

"I am kidding." He chuckled "Unless you want one?"

"No! I don't want a boat! What would I do with a boat anyway?"

"Well there is one thing you could do with a boat." He winked.

Hermione hit him again as she let out a small laugh.

"Get your mind out of the gutter!"

"I was actually thinking about sailing with it; you know, because that is the whole purpose of a boat?…Someone has a dirty mind."

"I do not!"

"That is not what I gathered last night…or this morning for that matter!" he called out as he turned and walked away from her.

"Ugh! You are insufferable!"

He turned his head back with a laugh as he continued walking.

"That is just part of my charm."

Hermione ran to catch up to him as he continued to walk down the pier at a slow pace. Taking her hand back, they walked a little further until they reached a small pizza shop.

"Thank you." Hermione muttered into the head of the teddy bear.

"For what?" he asked as he looked over the menu above the counter.

"For the bear." She smiled.

He turned his head to her and squeezed her hand in his before looking back at the board.

"So, do you want to go to the Zoo today?" Draco asked still looking over the menu at food choices he has never had before.

"It's The Fourth of July, Draco."

"And…What does that have to do with the Zoo?"

Hermione giggled slightly as she lowered the bear in her arms.

"Um, it's the United States National Day; one of the biggest celebrated days of the year here."

"I don't understand." He let out a long sigh "but I have a strong feeling you are about to give me a history lesson on the subject."

"It's a celebration for them. They also call it Independence Day. In 1776 the Declaration of Independence was signed and adopted by the Continental Congress." He raised a brown in confusion "The Congress declared that the thirteen American colonies regarded themselves as Free States and the US was no longer connected to the British Crown. They were at war with Great Britain and no longer wanted to be under British rule."

"Britain owned America?"

"For a while, yes. If it wasn't for winning the war, America would be a lot different right now. Today is one of the most memorable days in American history. They celebrate with fireworks and barbecues; picnics, baseball games-"

"What is baseball?" he interrupted.

"I…I will explain later." She giggled. "Right now, I am hungry. Do you know what you want to order?' she asked looking up at the menu.

"You still never said what that has to do with the Zoo."

"Today is very busy, as you can tell." She looked around at the large gathering in the shop "Everyone is out and the Zoo will be so packed, we won't be able to really enjoy it."

"Oh…Makes sense." He replied as he too, looked around. "Do you want to go tomorrow then?"

She nodded her head yes and stepped up to the counter.

"What can I get you Miss?" the man behind the counter asked as he wiped his hands on a towel.

"Do you know what you want to eat?" Hermione ask, looking back at Draco.

"I never had anything on this menu before. I don't really know what is good."

Hermione playfully rolled her eyes and looked back to the man.

"We will have a…medium pepperoni pie, two medium soft drinks, and…an order of garlic bread please."

"Coming right up!" the man turned to start the order and Draco looked at his wife in bewilderment.

"You want pie for lunch?"

"You never had pizza before? We have shops all over England. Surely you have had it for lunch or something?"

"Love, just because we live in England and my company is located in a muggle city, doesn't mean I eat muggle food. I tend to cook for myself and well now you…like you have seen."

"But it's pizza…Is that why you never order delivery? And order all our groceries by owl?"

"First off, that requires using a muggle telephone, which is just strange to me, or using that contraption you call a computer, that is currently residing in our office at home, which I have never used a day in my life."

"I'm confused. Your company is based off of using muggle technology in the wizarding world…You have never tested your own inventions?" she raised a brow at him.

"No. I have people for that. And we have perfectly good owls. Muggle tech is just a business venture that makes me rich."

"Wow." Her face turned to shock. "You, my dear husband, have so much to learn."

"And I have a strong feeling you are going to teach me…against my will."

"Obviously…I can't believe you never had a pizza pie before. It is like a rite of passage."

"Do I look like someone who would eat that kind of thing? How long have you known me? Have I ever been the type to want muggle things?" he asked placing his hands in the pocket of his shorts.

Hermione rolled her eyes and moved to the register.

"Why don't you find us a table and I'll get the food." she stated bitterly while handing him the bear.

"Fine by me." He shrugged, taking the stuffed animal, before he turned to look for an open table.

It took him a few minutes to find one, as every table was full, so he waited for a couple who was sitting in a booth, wrapping up to leave, and quickly sat down before anyone else could take it. Discretely pulling out his wand, Draco set the bear down and cast a cleaning spell on the table. While he waited for Hermione to find him, he couldn't help but stare at the large white bear in disgust. He didn't mind seeing the joy on Hermione's face once she allowed herself to be happy he got it for her, but he wished they would have found a way to shrink the damn thing before sitting down to eat.

Wrapping an arm around the neck of the bear, he leaned back and rested his head on the back of the booth.

"I guess for now, it's just the two of us." He spoke to the bear.

The teddy bear's head fell forward and rested on the table. Draco let out a sigh and shrunk his shoulders in defeat.

"I guess not." He stated with an eye roll.

Five minutes later, Hermione came squeezing through the large crowd with their order. Draco stood up to help her but she brushed him off and set the pie and garlic bread down before leaving him for a moment to grab their drinks. Once she came back, she set the drinks down and took a seat across from him.

She appeared to be slightly upset and Draco knew it was because of what he said earlier.

"Are you mad at me?" He asked in wonder, just to make sure.

"No, why would I be mad at you?" she stated a little coldly.

"Because of what I said? I didn't mean it like it sounded."

"Then how did you mean it? Because it sounded to me like you don't care about anything from my world; unless it makes you money." She claimed as she ripped a slice of pizza and placed it on the paper plate in front of him.

"I never said I didn't care about your world, Hermione. But come on; look at me. I am a pureblood wizard who has been sheltered his whole life from muggles and taught to look down on them. After the fall of Voldemort, I still held some prejudice against muggles and everything they do but I have changed since then. That doesn't mean I am not willing to try new things. For Merlin sakes, Hermione, I married you, a muggle-born with muggle parents. Give me some credit. Just because I have never felt the need to want to try food you grew up with, doesn't mean I don't care."

Hermione lowered her head and picked at the pepperoni sitting on top of her pizza before setting her hand down on the table and looked up.

"You're right. I'm sorry. It just that, for years I have known you to be one person, cruel and hateful, and then suddenly I wake up and I am married to you. I guess, I just have a hard time letting go of the past sometimes."

"Well you better learn to get over it quickly, because I _am_ your Husband and I love you; I am not that childhood bully anymore. I haven't been for a long time. Your world is now my world and if you want me to try something then just ask me and I most likely will. I want you to be happy. I might not like what you make me try but I also might love it; we don't know. But I am willing to do whatever it takes to keep a smile on that beautiful face of yours. That doesn't mean though, that I won't argue it or be a smart arse, because that is in my nature."

"I'm sorry." she stated sorrowfully.

"Why are you sorry? You have no reason to be." He reached a hand across the table and took hers in his. "Look, Hermione, Love, We are always going to see the children we once were because we grew up together. And like it or not, we are going to have disagreements and we are going to fight. We might need to lock up the wands when that happens," he chuckled "but that doesn't mean we don't care about each other or what the other person wants. Please don't ever think I don't care because I never did something muggle related or I seem unwilling. That is just the Slytherin in me. I am designed to be a wise arse. If that ever stops, then you should take me to St. Mungo's…immediately."

Hermione let out a small laugh and half-smiled at him.

"No promises…I think I would like to see you not be crass for once." She winked.

"But where is the fun in that? I would be boring and you would divorce me in a heart-beat." Draco stated, releasing her hand while leaning back and crossing his arms.

"Maybe." She shrugged as she lifted the slice of pizza on her plate and took a bite.

Draco chuckled before looking down and eyeing the greasy mess in front of him; contemplating whether or not trying the slab of cheese and meat on his plate, was a good idea.

Picking up the slice with his hands, he put the slice closer to his lips and took a small bite. Hermione watched him with a smile on her face as he tasted what he thought, was the most amazing thing he had ever tasted in his life.

Chewing a little more, he reveled in the deliciousness of trying pizza for the first time. He couldn't believe it took him as long as it did to try muggle food. He was blown away at how much he was enjoying the delectable treat before him.

"Why the bloody hell, haven't you introduced me to this before?" Draco asked as he took another bite.

Hermione chuckled as she wiped her chin with a napkin.

"I thought you've had it before…So you like it?"

"Do I li- I bloody love it!" he exclaimed.

"Good." She smiled "Now try this on it." she passed him some red pepper flakes.

He started to sprinkle some on top, when Hermione reached over and grabbed his wrist.

"Not that much!" she announced with a laugh "That stuff is hot."

Draco set the flakes down gently as he looked back to his plate. Lifting up his glass of soda, he began to take a sip as Hermione continued the conversation.

"So I asked the cashier and he said there will be fireworks on the beach after sundown; if you want to go. Also there is something I need to tell you and I-"

"Bloody Hell!" Draco cut in as he pulled the drink back and looked at it in astonishment.

Hermione froze mid-sentence and looked at him confused.

"Is it flat? Should I grab a new one?" She asked picking up her own glass to take a sip. "It tastes fine to me."

"Fine?" Draco asked in shock "This is not fine!"

"You have had soda before…in my hospital room; remember? You liked it then. You even said, and I quote, _'What sort of witchcraft is this, how are muggles able to create such a wonderful concoction?'_ "

"This isn't soda, Hermione, this…this is pure magic!" he exclaimed.

"Um…What?" Hermione raised a brow.

"This is the most amazing thing I have ever tasted! Well, besides you of course." He beamed.

"Draco…it's the same thing that comes in a can or bottle. It ju-"

"This is not the same thing! This is so much better! What did they do to it? Do they have a wizard working for them? What flavor is this? They have so many!"

Hermione tried to stifle a laugh as Draco continued to sip the soft drink in his hand.

"Draco, it's just a fountain soda. They have more syrup in them than bottled ones, which, makes them taste slightly different. They don't have anyone magical working for them; just a lot of sugar."

"Well they are bloody geniuses!"

Hermione chuckled and shook her head before continuing to finish her food. Once they were both done, and Draco was fully satisfied after his third carbonated drink, they made their way out the pizza shop and down to the amusement park at the end of the boardwalk.

"I can't carry this thing anymore!" Draco exclaimed in frustration; stopping in front of a small shop with curtains for doors "How do muggles do this all day? This fucking bear is a pain in my arse! It's hot out and this thing is making my arm sweat!"

"You are the one who bought it when you didn't have to." Hermione stated as a matter of fact. "If it bothers you that much we can find a bathroom and shrink it, then put it in my bag."

"He was right, your bond is strong." A woman interrupted calmly.

Draco turned his head and looked at the woman who was dressed very similar to a gypsy.

"Come inside; I have something for you." She stated raising a finger, waving them to her.

Draco turned to look at Hermione, who looked just as confused as he did, as the woman gracefully turned and walked into the shop. Draco began to follow but Hermione pulled him back.

"What are you doing?" she whispered.

"Going in…What does it look like I am doing?" He replied confused while pointing to the curtain.

"You can't just go in there because someone told you to follow them!"

"Hermione, this isn't war; we are not fighting an evil tyrant or my mother. I am sure going into a fortune tellers shop is not going to kill us."

"You don't know that! She could…" her sentence trailed off.

"She could what? Kidnap us; burn us with her lies of the future?" he chuckled "I am sure we can handle whatever is in there." he turned and began walking into the shop.

Hermione reluctantly followed him but as Draco entered, he noticed the shop was a lot larger inside than it appeared to be on the outside. Walking around the shop he took in the feel of how it looked very similar to Borgin and Burkes; but cleaner, less dusty, and more inviting.

Draco picked up a glass sphere and as Hermione ventured off to look around. He rotated the ball in his hand and went to set it back down on the counter when he heard his name being called.

"Mr. Malfoy? Is that you?" a man asked behind him.

Setting the ball down and turning around, Draco came face to face with a man he never thought he would see again.

"Jason?" he asked in surprise.

"You remember me? Wow, brilliant!" he stated, taking a step forward.

"How could I forget the paramedic that helped save my wife's life?" Draco exclaimed setting the bear down "How are you?"

"I'm great-wait…did you say wife? You and…"

"Yup." Draco crossed his arms and smiled.

"Wow! When? Congratulations by the way!"

"Thanks, just this past Saturday, actually. We're here on our Honeymoon." He stated proudly, leaning back against the counter. "So what brings you to America?"

"Vacation…well sort of. Visiting cousins out here; they were adamant about us coming for this holi-"

"Jason, can we get this?" a boy around the age of thirteen asked.

"Steven!" Jason exclaimed as he turned to the boy "Look who I ran into!"

Steven turned his head and his mouth instantly fell open as he stood frozen in shock.

"Ah so this is Steven! It's a pleasure to finally meet you." Draco announced while stretching his hand out to shake the young boys. "I have heard a lot about you."

Steven slowly began to reach out a trembling hand as he stared at Draco; star struck.

"You-you're…you're Draco Malfoy!" he exclaimed through a stutter. "Holy Hell!"

"Language, Steve!" Jason cut in firmly "Just because mum isn't here doesn't mean you can just curse whenever you please."

"But it's Draco bloody Malfoy!" Steven stated in excitement as Draco released his hand.

"Draco, I found a restroom we can shrink the bear in-oh, hello." Hermione stopped walking and looked at the brothers with a warm smile.

Steven's eyes moved from Draco to Hermione and his jaw looked to practically fall off his face. His eyes began to roll back into his head as he fell back and almost crashed to the floor. Everyone reached out to catch the boy but Jason got to him first.

"Whoa!" Draco called out "Are you okay?" he asked as Steven came to and stood up.

"Am I dreaming? Is this really happening? Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger! The most famous couple in the whole wizarding world right now is standing before me!...I must be dreaming; either that or I am going crazy."

"You are not going crazy." Jason chuckled slightly "Nor are you dreaming."

"I apologize." Draco chimed in "You and my wife have not been properly introduced. This is Hermione, as you already know, and Hermione, Love, this is Jason."

"Hello." Hermione reached out a hand to shake Jason's. "Wait," she looked at Draco before looking back to Jason. "This isn't the paramedic you told me about, is it?"

"The very same; he and his brother here are on holiday visiting family."

Hermione grasped her other hand on top of Jason's and looked him in the eyes with a soft expression.

"Draco told me all about you and what you did for both of us…Thank you, for helping save my life."

"Wait," Steven cut in "So you weren't lying when you said you met both of them and saved one third of the Golden Trio?"

"He wasn't lying." Draco answered with a half-smile.

Hermione turned to the boy and released her hands from Jason.

"You are Steven? She asked pleasantly.

"I…eh hem." Steven straightened his shoulders and held out his hand. "I am. But please, call me Steve." He stated proudly.

"Well Steve, Draco told me all about you. How you are a muggle-born in Slytherin and I am assuming, since it has been a year that you are going into your…fifth year now? It is a pleasure to meet you." Hermione beamed.

"The pleasure is all mine Ms. Granger-er I mean Mrs. Malfoy."

"Oh, please call me Hermione. No need to be so formal."

Steven grinned from ear to ear as he shook Hermione's hand and Draco could tell just how excited the boy was at meeting them. Normally he would have just brushed the boy off but he couldn't help but revel in meeting the only fan he has ever had; not including his wife.

"Have you visited the zoo yet?" Hermione asked, drawing Draco back to reality.

"Not yet." Jason replied looking down at his brother "We were going to go today but I never expected the crowd to be so large. American's sure do take their festivities above and beyond." He chuckled.

"Oh, you both should come with us! We were going to go tomorrow!" Hermione exclaimed in excitement.

"What?" Draco chimed in in shock.

"Yes!" Steven announced before anyone had a chance to say anything.

"Now, now Steve, they are on their honeymoon. We don't want to impose on them. Maybe when we are all back in England we could do something with them then." Jason added.

"Yes, that sounds like a great id-" Draco began but Hermione held a hand up to his chest and stopped him before pulling him off to the side.

"Draco, it is just the zoo." She whispered.

"Yes but it is our time together, Hermione. I don't want others tagging along. I want you to myself while we are here." He retorted.

"We still have a lot of time left on our honeymoon. One day isn't going to hurt anyone. Besides, he is just a kid and the zoo isn't romantic. I think we would have a lot of fun with them. Please Draco." She began to pout. "I promise to make it up to you later. You can have me in more ways than one after tomorrow. I think having someone who has been here before will be nice."

"No." he stated firmly.

Hermione furrowed her brows and stood her ground.

"Jason helped saved my life! I owe him and if taking him and his brother to the zoo is one way to help pay him back, then I will do it!"

Draco softened his features and released the tension in his shoulders as he let out a sigh.

"Fine. But one day!" He held up a finger "Do you understand? We can plan something later with them afterwards when we get back home. After tomorrow, it is just you and I. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal!" she smiled widely before placing a quick kiss on his lips and turned around. "So…Who wants to go…."

As Hermione continued to talk to the brothers, Draco noticed the gypsy looking woman off to the side just staring at him. As she turned and walked into a room, Draco couldn't help but be drawn to her. The curiosity of her mysteriousness made him question why she brought them into her shop in the first place.

"I'll be right back." He mentioned before kissing Hermione's cheek and walking away to follow the woman.

He slowly made his way to the back of the store to the doorway he last saw the woman at. Taking a glace inside, he didn't see her but he took note that the room looked very similar to what Professor Trelawney might have done if she had free reign on what her classroom looked like. Instead of desks and benches, there where colorful blankets and pillows laid throughout the floor and a single low table sat in the middle of the room. A small glass sphere rested upon the table and that confirmed that the shop was one of those fortune teller places Hermione always loved to hate.

As Draco drew closer to the orb, he suddenly felt a presence looming over him. Turning around quickly, he came face to face with the woman he followed.

"You are a curious one." She mentioned with a small smile. "Please, have a seat."

Draco eyed the woman, not really knowing if he should listen to her or not. She seemed friendly enough but he played with his wand in his pocket, just in case he was wrong.

"I don't bite." She giggled "There is no need to pull your wand out. This is a safe place."

"My wand?" he finally managed to say; not even realizing he was holding back on speaking.

"I know who you are, Draco Malfoy. I also know who your wife is. Congratulations on getting married."

"Um…Thanks. Who are you?" he questioned with suspicion in his voice.

"Forgive me. My name is Regina Popworth. I am a seer for the Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. This is my home during the summer."

"So that is how you know who I am? You saw me in one of your…visions or whatever." He asked taking his hand out of his pocket.

"Yes and no. I know who you are because of Harry Potter." She began walking past Draco and to a shelf in the back of the room. "He helped me through a struggle when I visited England a few years ago. I won't go into detail but let's just say…I owe him a favor."

"What kind of favor? And what does it have to do with me and my wife?"

"He warned me that you are very protective of Hermione. That is a good trait to have, especially with the threat looming over you." Regina began as she picked up some papers off the shelf.

"Threat? What threat?" he asked as he reached back into his pocket for his wand.

"I do not know. But you and your wife have a dark ominous shadow lingering in your auras. I wish I could tell you more but this sort of shadow, is not one I have seen before. It is different; but I know it means danger."

"Danger?" Draco questioned while taking a step forward.

"I can give you a reading if you like. It can help me determine more about what sort of danger you and your wife are in."

At that moment, Draco figured the seer's tactic was to draw him in with a made up tale to get him to pay for a reading. He wasn't having it and he wasn't going to let her con him. No matter who it was that she knew.

"I'm good, thanks." He stated with a huff.

"Very well." Regina replied as she began walking over to Draco. "Mr. Potter has sent an owl this morning and has asked that I find a way to give these to you." She handed Draco two envelopes. One addressed to him and one addressed to Hermione.

"Why didn't he just send the owl to us instead?" he asked with a raised brow.

"The letter he sent me stated that Mrs. Malfoy is not see the letter he has sent to you. I do not know what it contains but he mentioned that it was of vital importance that she not know at this time. He said that if he sent both letters to you, then your wife would question what was in yours."

"What the bloody hell is so important that he would tell me and not her?"

"I do not know. But I had a strong feeling that you would arrive here today and follow me. Giving you time to read your letter before your wife sees it."

Draco looked down at the envelope with his name written neatly on the cover and pondered whether it was worth opening without Hermione. He assumed however, that if Harry requested she not see it right now, than it had to be important.

Turning the letter over, he ran his finger under the flap and opened the envelope. Pulling out the sheet of paper, Draco opened the letter and began to read.

' _Malfoy,_

 _I hope you and Hermione are having a wonderful time on your honeymoon! I apologize for the way this letter was handed to you and I really do not mean to interrupt your festivities, but what I have to tell you cannot wait. I hate that I have to put this burden on you but it is imperative that Hermione not know until she gets back. I have my reasons for not telling her and only telling you, but if you feel you must tell her before the end of your holiday, then so be it. There is no way I can stop you, but please understand that once I tell you, you will know why it must be kept secret.'_

Draco looked up to the seer, who was leaning against the shelf watching him, with questioning eyes before looking back down to continue reading.

' _Before I get into the details, I first want to make sure you have a cover story. In case Hermione is next to you and asks why I wrote you separately. You can just tell her that Ginny and I are having another baby, which is written in her letter as well, and we have asked that you be the Godfather; like you are to James. It is not a lie. We are having another baby and we did want to ask you to be the Godfather. Ginny is only about a month along and after James was born so early we didn't want to tell everyone just yet, in case of complications. But she could not wait to ask so she had me write to you._

 _So now you have a cover story and we do hope that you write back and let us know if you accept. I know two children is a lot to handle especially so close together, but we trust you and you are family. It is the least we could do after everything you did to protect Hermione and allowing me to be your Best Man at your wedding.'_

Draco let out a light laugh as he read those words and was proud that Harry had chosen him to God Father to both of his children. He was not fond of the idea of children but he did love James like he was his own and now there would be two he could spoil with his riches.

' _Anyway, enough of that; now on to the news…'_

As Draco kept reading, his face began to fall as each word came into view. He had no choice but to sit down on one of the colorful pillows as he read each and every line. He knew if he told Hermione what Harry had just told him, she would freak out and their perfect honeymoon would end. But he also knew that if he held the information back, it could potentially cause her to hate him. He hated that Harry had told him now instead of just waiting but he understood where he was coming from. And now the choice was on Draco to decide. Should he tell his wife the news, or should he hold back and hope for the best?


	4. Chapter 4- Secrets

**AN: Sorry for the delay everyone! My computer went berserk and I had to spend a few days trying to fix it. I do apologize also that this chapter is a little shorter than the rest but I promise next chapter will be a little longer. I can't say for certain when Chapter 5 will be posted, but I do hope to finish it sooner than I did this Chapter. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 4- Secrets

 **Tuesday, July 4** **th** **, 2006 01:42pm**

As Draco sat on the bright colored pillow, he rested his arms on his bent knees and ran his fingers through his blonde hair. He had no idea what he was supposed to do and he had little time to decide.

"You are torn. The news is bad." Regina commented, interrupting the fight going on in his head.

Looking up at the ceiling he let out a breath before lowering his eyes to the raven haired seer.

"Did you have a vision or something?" he stated rather harshly.

"No. Your face and body language tells it all."

"Figures." He let out a deep sigh. "What am I supposed to do? If I tell her, then the Potters will be angry with me and it will cut this honeymoon short with the possibility of Hermione being mad at Potter for ruining this for her and saying anything before we get back. It will also put her in danger…but if I don't tell her…" he let his sentence trail off as he looked back at the letter.

"If you don't tell her, then there is the possibility of her hating you?" Regina finished for him.

"And Potter as well for telling me to hold the information back. Also, it would put her in danger."

"What does your heart say?"

Draco looked up at the seer as he slumped his shoulders.

"To not be so selfish and just tell her."

"Then tell her." Regina backed off the shelf and took a seat on a pillow in front of him.

"But I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because, if I tell her, then a whole wind of problems will develop. Ginny is pregnant again and the added stress could cause difficulties in her pregnancy. She is already dealing with a lot and if she loses the baby because I gave in and told Hermione…." He let off another deep sigh "Potter and Ginny would never forgive me for telling her on her honeymoon, when they specifically asked me not to say anything. They are the only friends I have right now. But I am her husband; I should be the one to tell her everything. I mean who knows. Maybe if I tell her then she won't react the way we all expect her to…" Draco looked at the letter again before crumpling it up and throwing it across the room. "Who the hell am I kidding? Of course she will react the way we all think!"

"You seem very torn about this. Why not give yourself a few days to make a choice? I mean, is having your wife hate you more important that losing your friends?" Regina asked in a calm mother-like tone.

"I would rather her hate me than hate her friends."

"But it was her friends that put this burden on you."

"You don't know how deep their friendship goes. I can't be the one to ruin that for her. Either way, she is going to hate someone. I would rather her not hate Potter. If I have to then I will tell her that it was my decision to not say anything. Potter thinks it's best that she not know right now…then I will have to respect that. He knows her better than I do, unfortunately."

"I don't think hiding it from her is a good idea. But if your heart is telling you to hold back…then you must do that."

"Honestly, if it wasn't for Ginny being pregnant with the possibilities of major complications right now, then I would tell her right now, no questions asked. A honeymoon can be post-pone. Her baby can't…I don't know, this is all too much! I have never had to deal with something like this before. "

Regina softened her face to one of pity as she looked down at her hands.

"Can you tell me what it is? Maybe I can better help you if I knew what the news was."

"I can't. I am sorry but if I tell you before I even tell my wife, then she will definitely hate me for sure."

"I understand. It is not my place. Although, it seems to me, like you are already leading in the direction of not telling Hermione."

"Telling me what?"

Draco quickly snapped his head around and saw Hermione standing the doorway looking confused, yet curious. It was too soon and he still had not made up his mind. However, seeing his beautiful wife standing before him, made his racing mind halt to a stop. There was no way he would want to put her in any danger, let alone worry about something that is being dealt with.

"Tell me what Draco?" Hermione demanded to know as she walked into the room. "Are you getting a reading? Is that what you won't tell me? You know how I feel about that kind of _thing_ Draco!"

"It was my fault!" Regina stated as she rushed to stand up from the pillow she was resting on.

Draco looked back to the woman with a confused expression and wonder just what she was doing before it hit him. She was covering for him; giving him time to decide if he should tell his wife the news or if he should keep it a secret; at least for now.

"I talked him into it. I do apologize. Your husband looked to be in need of a reading." She continued while Draco began to stand up.

Turning back to face Hermione, Draco saw the frustration creep across her perfect freckled face as she began to cross her arms in anger.

"And what gives you the right to try to con my husband out of his good hard-earned money?" Hermione spat.

Regina's face contorted to one of anger and perplexity while her hands balled into fists at her side.

"Con? I run a legitimate business Mrs. Malfoy, one that holds accurate results I might add! You might not believe in the work I do or the gift I hold, but if I didn't possess the magic to see what other cannot, then I guarantee you, I would gladly find a summer job elsewhere that makes more money instead of slumming it in this no-maj tourist filled town! Do not disrespect me in my place of business! I am no con!"

Hermione lowered her hands from their crossed position and opened her mouth to retort when Draco decided that enough was enough.

"STOP! We get it, alright? Hermione you hate seers and Regina you hate being insulted! There is no need for the bickering back and forth that will get us nowhere but a shouting match!" Draco took a step back, making it easier to see both women without having to fully turn each time, and looked at his wife in disappointment. "No Hermione, I was not going to get a reading," Hermione once again opened her mouth to speak but Draco quickly cut her off with a raised hand " _Although_ , I know it may look like I was. She did ask if I wanted a reading and I said no, that is when she told me about herself and that Potter sent us all letters from home; instructing the owl to fly to her. And before you ask, yes she knows Potter, no she didn't explain in details how, she works for the Ilvermorny School, and she is a seer, whether you like it or not. We were just talking about what Potter told me in my letter before you came in." He raised his hand holding Hermione's envelope and waved it in the air to show her he was telling the truth.

Taking a few steps closer to her, he handed her the letter and stepped back. Hermione looked regretful for a moment before she lowered her head to look at the envelope in her hand.

"Why didn't Harry just write us both on one? Why did he send two separate ones? And why not send it directly to us?" She asked raising her eyes to him.

"Because he wanted to ask us both something and it was more meaningful to do it separately. Regina got one as well. I don't want to stand here and deduce Potters logic about how he decides to deliver mail, nor am I going to. Can you just open your letter so we can get going; or don't so we can leave? I really don't care which one; I would just like to go. "

Hermione let off a slight pout at Draco's response but she looked to have believed what he said. Lowering her head once more, she began to open the envelope and pull out the paper inside. He crossed his arms and waited; giving her a minute to read it over. As he watched her, he saw a faint smile begin to appear across her lips; knowing she reached the part of Harry asking her to be Godmother.

As she continued reading, Draco looked over to Regina who had moved back to the shelf she was at earlier. She turned to look at him, almost as if knowing he wanted her attention. He quickly mouthed the words 'thank you' hoping the she knew just how much he meant it. Regina nodded her head before turning back to the self and began pulling out a book.

Turning back to his wife, he took notice that the smile on Hermione's face turned to a frown and he wondered why. There was no reason for her to be upset, unless Harry had also told her something she was to keep from him.

"What is it Hermione? What's wrong?" he asked taking a step forward to see what was written, while resting a hand gently on her left shoulder.

"Nothing," She began "Just Harry letting me know that Ginny is pregnant again and asking me to be the baby's Godmother. He also mentioned that you mother is up for parole, due to overly good behavior; but he doesn't think she will get it since she is serving a life sentence."

"Is that why you are frowning?" He asked, a little too quickly while removing his hand.

"No." She let off a sigh and folded the paper back up. "He didn't mention anything about Ron. I would have thought he would have told me at least something about him; how he's doing, or if he is up for parole too."

Draco whole body suddenly stiffened at the mention of Ron's name and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop the anxiety building up inside him. Part of what he knew, he could handle, but the part about Ron…that was something he knew he couldn't hold back for long.

"Well I wouldn't worry about it." He finally stated, not even realizing he broke free from his frozen state. "He is no longer in our lives and is safely tucked far away at Azkaban… where he can never get to you again."

"But that is the thing, Draco…He was my best friend for years. I might hate him for everything he did, but I still care about how he is doing. I can't just completely erase him…he will always be part of my life."

Before Draco could respond, Regina walked over to the couple and handed Draco the book she had pulled from the self.

"I am sorry to interrupt, but I got a very strong feeling that you should have this."

Draco looked down at the book and read the title aloud.

" _Space and the Dangers it Holds_...Why on Earth, would I need this?" he asked turning the book in his hand.

"I don't quite know." Regina claimed with a tilt of her head.

"Ugh, of course you don't." Hermione spat with an eye roll. "I think it's time we go, before I say something that will get us both in trouble."

With that, Hermione turned and began walking out of the door, but Draco just stood there looking down at the book; wondering why he would ever need a book on space.

"Are you coming Draco?" Hermione asked from the doorway after taking in deep breath.

"Yeah." He replied not looking away from the book.

Finally he realized they were leaving and quickly looked up at Regina.

"Thank you…You know, for everything."

Regina nodded her head with a faint smile resting on her lips.

"Be careful out there."

Before Draco even had a chance to reply, Regina turned on her heels and walked away from him. Leaving him wondering, just what she meant by her statement.

Never did she tell him, she already read his future when he was sitting in front of her crystal ball; and what she saw, didn't look good.

XXXX

 **Tuesday, July 4** **th** **, 2006 03:15pm**

He was hiding something and she knew it. Hermione was not one to not notice small details and changes in people's demeanors, especially when it came to Draco Malfoy. Of all people to read, she would have thought her husband would be the hardest. Turns out, he was actually the easiest. She thought maybe it was due to living with him every day, but then she remembered she used to live with Harry and Ron every day too, but they took a lot longer to figure out than Draco. There was always something about him, even in school he was so easy to read; which is probably why she always felt pity on him.

Hermione knew though, the moment Draco tensed up at the sound of Ron's name, that he had information. She just wondered if he was going to tell her or not. He wasn't like her friends though; getting him to spill was going to be a lot harder than trying to get Harry to tell her about, well anything.

As she watched her husband sitting next to her on the beach chair, engrossed in the book Regina gave him, Hermione wondered how she was going to proceed to get the information he was hiding out of him. He wouldn't hide something from her unless it was extremely important and it didn't help that she was the type of person who hated people keeping secrets from her.

"Why are you reading that book? If you really wanted to know anything about space I can just tell you." She began, setting her own book down on her lap.

Draco continued to read as he replied to her; never once looking up from the book.

"Because, sometimes I like to learn information on my own, through a good book, rather than hearing it from someone else."

To be fair, she was also the same way. But he had not said more than a few words to her since they left the scam of a fortune tellers shop and she really wanted to get him talking.

"What is so interesting in that book that you don't already know from school?"

"Lots of things. Astronomy was mainly about constellations; nothing about black holes and the fact that Jupiter eats its own moons." He claimed as he turned the page, still not looking at her.

"Jupiter doesn't eat its moons. Its gravitational pull is just so strong that the moons get sucked into the pull."

Glancing up from the book, Draco looked at her with a raised brow.

"That would be considered eating its own moons."

"Eating would imply that it is alive and it's not. It is just a large gas planet."

Draco rolled his eyes and went back to reading.

"A large gas planet, which I might add, has saved Earth from asteroids capable of destroying us many times, without us even knowing. It eats shit. It is a living planet bodyguard to me."

Hermione let out a huff and looked towards the ocean. She was happy that the beach in front of their Villa was private. She couldn't imagine how much of a hassle it would have been to find a spot and relax by the boardwalk. Letting out a sigh she looked up to the sky and noticed a small bright shape shoot across the blue cloudless atmosphere. She had to squint through her sunglasses but she was sure she saw a light that wasn't supposed to be there.

Turning her head back to Draco, she was about to ask him if he too saw what she just did, but he was too busy looking down to even notice. Lifting her sunglasses to the top of her head, she looked back up at the area she saw the light to make sure she wasn't going crazy, but there was nothing there. Just a seagull flapping its wings as it soars through the air looking for fish in the ocean.

Shaking off the weird feeling she was getting, Hermione lifted her book back up and tried to continue reading. However, something was not sitting right with her and she could no longer concentrate.

"What's wrong?" Draco asked her, still not lifting his head.

"What makes you think something is wrong?"

"Because you are getting antsy and you're no longer reading."

She didn't know how he could tell when he never seemed to even look at her, but she assumed he knew her better than she thought.

"Something isn't right. I don't know what it is but something is…off. And I saw this bright flash of light shoot across the sky."

"Maybe it's that fact that you're not out saving the wizarding world or fighting bad guys. Learn to just relax and stop trying to find something in nothing. It was probably just a shooting star."

"During the day? That is extremely rare unless under the right conditions."

Letting out a deep sigh, Draco closed his book and set it down in the sand.

"I don't know what to tell you Hermione. Maybe you are just seeing things."

"Oh like I see that you barely look at me or the fact that you have barley even spoken to me sine we left that shop."

"What?"

"You heard me." She claimed as she fully sat up from her lounged position.

"Where is this coming from? I haven't been ignoring you. My mind is just-"

"Somewhere else? What are you hiding from me!' She demanded in frustration. "You never ignore me unless you are hiding something and I know Harry told you something and told you not to tell me. So what is it?" she asked angrily as she turned her body towards him and rested her feet in the sand.

Draco's face fell as his skin turned a ghostly white. She was absolutely sure now that he was keeping a secret; though she only guessed that Harry had told him not to tell. His reaction just now, confirmed her suspicions.

"So Harry did tell you to keep something from me?"

"Hermione I-"

"Draco Lucius Malfoy! You tell me this instant or I swear to Merlin!"

"Okay! Okay…" Draco stated in panic as held up his hands in defeat. Please don't be mad at Potter. He is handling the situation."

"What situation?" she questioned; a little more rough than she intended.

"My…mother is out on parole."

"WHAT?" Hermione stood up from chair so quickly that the book laying in her lap shot off and almost hit Draco in the face. That was not what she thought he was going to say and the shock began to overwhelm her. "How in Godric's name did that bloody happen! When did that happen?"

"A few days ago and they don't know." He began calmly while turning to face her.

"They don't know! How do they not know!"

"Would you stop and let me explain…Potter suspects that more than one person on the Parole Board was paid off and granted it to her. There is no other way that they would grant her freedom just on good behavior. Not with everything she has done. Not even my father is allowed to get it. But she was never sentence to life without parole…just life. Although, she never should have been granted anything with life sentence."

"Where is she now? She can't leave the country right?" Hermione began to panic and started pacing back and forth in front the beach chair.

"She can't leave the country and her wand was snapped in half upon sentencing. She can't hurt you Hermione."

Draco stood up from his chair and walked over to her. But the last thing Hermione wanted in that moment was comfort. Brushing his hands away, she stormed off back to the Villa in anger and fear. It took her a long time to feel normal again after what Narcissa Malfoy put her through and she would be damned if she let the witch affect her again.

Throwing open the sliding glass door, Hermione pulled out her wand and flicked her wrist; packing everything up as quickly as possible.

"What are you doing?" Draco asked as he dodged a plate flying through the air. "Hermione! What the bloody hell are you doing?"

"Packing!" She claimed in frustration while marching up the stairs to the bedroom.

"Why?" he questioned as a pair of pants smacked him face.

"Because I need to know where she is and what her plan is. We are going home!"

Pulling out his own wand, Draco held it in the air in irritation.

"Finite!" he shouted, and all the items moving across the bedroom instantly fell to the ground.

"This is exactly why Potter told me not to tell you! He knew you would react like this and cut our honeymoon short! He didn't want to ruin that for you, which is why he told me. You are acting irrational!"

Hermione furrowed her eyebrows and gave Draco the death glare she knew he was terrified of.

"Irrational? IRRATIONAL! How dare you! Your mother is out of Azkaban and most likely concocting a plan to kill me again and all you want to do is stay here and ignore that! How selfish can you get?" she shouted.

"Selfish? I am not acting selfish for protecting you! We go home right now and you are putting yourself right into my mother's hands! She can't get to you here and Potter is taking care of it! He and the whole Auror office are keeping close tabs on her while trying to figure out how she got out in the first place!"

"I need to be there! I can't run from her my whole life and we have to go home eventually! It is better to go now and find out what she is up to than to wait and give her time to maneuver her pieces around."

"This isn't a game of chess for Salazar sake, Hermione! You are not a pawn and she is not a queen anymore! We are not going anywhere!" he yelled in aggravation.

"Who the _hell_ are you to tell me what to do?" She yelled back, fully riled up.

"YOU'RE FUCKING HUSBAND!" he screamed, making her step back while finally quieting the hostility she was feeling towards him, rendering her speechless. "I am your bloody husband but for some reason, that fact seems to keep slipping your fucking mind! Regardless of whether or not you remember you married me, I will be damned if I put you in harm's way again! I will do whatever it takes to protect you, Hermione, even if it is against your own fucking decisions! And being my wife, I would hope you would do the same for me when I am not thinking clearly! Don't be so fucking daft and understand that I know what I am doing! Going home right now, _WILL_ put you in danger!"

Hermione was thrown back at Draco's outburst. Never in her life, other than the night his mother and Ron cornered them in the parking garage, did she ever see him so angry. And this, was the first time his anger had been directed towards her. The will to not scream back at him, fought heavily in her mind, but she knew he had a point. No matter what she said in retaliation, she knew it would never outmatch that fact, that he was right.

Instantly, all anger she held against him and Harry vanished and all she that was left, was fear. Her eyes began to water without her even realizing they were doing so as terror washed over her. She was a strong and brave witch, but the things she had been through over her life was enough to break anyone for two lifetimes.

A single tear drop, fell from her eye and rolled down her cheek; resting upon her lips while filling her mouth with the salty taste of dread.

"I…I'm scared." Was all she was able to muster.

And as she spoke those words, the tears she was holding back released upon the world and began to pour down her face. But also as soon as she spoke those words, she felt the strong protective hands of Draco wrap around her; holding her tightly and refusing to let go.

Sinking her face into his chest, she cried harder that she had ever cried before; letting everything she ever held back, out.

"I know you're scared Love," Draco whispered softly "I am scared too. But I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe. Please always remember that. I am always going to be there for you. You are my whole world Hermione. I will never let anything bad happen to you."

As Draco continued to whisper to her in soothing tones, Hermione continued to cry. But she was so caught up in her own thoughts and his protective hold, that she didn't hear his voice falter slightly as he tried to calm her. She never once question what he was still holding back from her; essentially tearing him apart inside. And all the while he refused to tell her, that he knew, a whole lot more than he led on.


	5. Chapter 5- Fireworks

AN: Thank you all for your patience! I would like to credit **Scorpia11** for helping me fix the **Mature Content** part in this chapter, which I was stuck on for a few days. She definitely helped me bring it to life!

Chapter 5- Fireworks

 **Tuesday, July 4** **th** **, 2006 06:12pm**

Draco stood in the en-suite bathroom, staring at himself in the mirror with his head hanging low. He couldn't believe he yelled at Hermione only a few hours ago. He didn't mean to lose his temper but she was being so unreasonable and not thinking straight. He also couldn't contemplate why he wouldn't just tell her what he knew. Every time the words seemed like they would come, something held them back. He knew if just told her then she would understand why going home was dangerous.

The secrets were eating him up inside, tearing him apart, and ripping away at his soul. He was surprised he was even able to tell Hermione about his mother being out of Azkaban, but for some reason, he couldn't tell her that Harry also had no idea where she was at.

His mother never checked in with her Parole Auror after she was released like she was supposed to. She could be anywhere in England right now; plotting and planning just like Hermione assumed. And her assumptions were usually correct. Harry and his team tried looking everywhere they thought his mother might go, however luck was not on their side and they still haven't been able to track her down.

Draco hunched over the sink more and let out a deep sigh. Turning on the faucet, he splashed cold water onto his face and looked back up at the mirror. A fight raged on in his mind with a decision weighing heavily on his chest. He couldn't figure out which path would cause less harm; telling Hermione before they went out to dinner, possibly ruining her night, or if he should just wait until after, also possibly ruining her night. He knew he had to tell her soon, because he could no longer hold the information a secret anymore and he was afraid he was going to burst in the middle of a crowded room.

"Get it together Draco," He whispered to himself "just tell her now. She will understand."

"Understand what?" a voice asked gently; startling him out of his thoughts.

But once he realized it was just Hermione, he turned back around and hunched over the sink once more.

"You have an annoying habit of sneaking up on people, you know that?" He stated rolling his eyes and letting out a huff through his nose; trying to ignore the fact that she looked absolutely stunning in heels.

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to. It just sort of, happens."

Looking at her through the mirror, he let out another deep sign and licked his lips.

"Hermione, I have to-"

"Draco, there is something-"

They both started at the same time.

"You go first." He mentioned as he turned around and rubbed the back of his neck.

"No, you go." Hermione stated nervously "I can wait."

Slumping his shoulders, Draco leaned back onto the sink and took in a deep breath.

"I am sorry for yelling at you earlier."

"It's okay, I-"

He held up a hand, stopping her short of forgiving him too early.

"Let me finish…Please."

Hermione moved to sit on the top of the toilet seat to the right of the sink and motioned for Draco to continue.

"I…I wasn't fully honest with you earlier." He began while putting his hands in his pockets and looked to the floor. "I shouldn't have yelled at you and I am sorry for that. But I had my reasons." He looked up and stared at the wall in front of him, refusing to look at her.

"Draco…what is it?" Hermione asked calmly, seemingly trying not to start another fight.

Tilting his head back, Draco looked up at the ceiling, knowing he was in for a world of trouble once he told her everything.

"Draco, just tell me." She stated after he took, what seemed like forever, to answer her.

Lowering his head back to the floor, he let out the breath he was holding and raised a hand. Gliding his fingers through his hair he looked back to the wall in front of him.

"Potter…Potter doesn't know where my mother is."

"Say that again."

Draco could see Hermione's body tense up from the corner of his eye and he knew it was too late to go back now.

"My mother never checked in with any Auror after her release. Potter can't find her-but _he is_ looking and she can't leave the country." He quickly stated.

The silence cut through the air like a thousand knives as he turned to face his wife. It seemed like hours, before Hermione calmly stood up and fixed the wrinkles of her little black dress. She looked at him with an unreadable, blank face; and without saying a word, she calmly walked out of the bathroom, leaving Draco worried and baffled at the same time.

"Hermi-Hermione!" he called out to her, following the path she took.

Hermione started down the stairs at a fast pace, ripping the diamond stud earrings he got her for her Valentine's Day, out and throwing them to the floor.

"Hermione stop!"

She still didn't answer him as she walked to the door, grabbed her jumper off the coat rack, and reached for her handbag.

"Where are you going?" He called out to her as her hand grasped the doorknob. "Please, just hear me out!"

Still she was silent. The door swung open and she stepped outside; her black stilettos clicking across the front porch.

"GRANGER!"

Hermione suddenly stopped in her tracks, making Draco wonder where he was supposed to go from there.

"Hermione, please…Let me explain." He pleaded desperately.

"Explain?" Her voice cold and full of anger. "Explain how you lied to me?" she turned around and Draco could see her blood begin to boil over. "Explain how you hid important information that involves the woman that nearly killed me!"

"I did it to protect you." he interrupted.

"Protect me?" She yelled out "I don't need you to protect me, Malfoy! I am perfectly capable of doing that myself!"

"Right! A lot of good you have done lately!"

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means that I have been saving your arse since that day at my Tower!" He crossed his arms and rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"That is absurd and a blatant lie!"

"Oh really? Shall we recap me saving you from falling to your death in the lift? Or from falling to a fiery grave while you tried to help people who were basically already dead! Oh and trying to save you again in the Parking Garage when my own mother attacked you! And let's not forget that it was _my_ blood that kept you alive when you fucking died on me! I can keep going if you like!"

"That has nothing to do with you lying to me!" she stated angrily as she swiped the hand holding her handbag, through the air.

"I didn't lie! I just didn't tell you the full truth!" Draco ran his fingers through his hair as he tried to calm down. "Look Hermione I-"

"No matter how you try to justify it, that is still considered lying! What else are you hiding from me? I know there is more!"

"What?" he asked confused; shocked that she knew he was still holding back a very large secret.

"Oh don't you dare pretend that I am stupid, Malfoy!"

"Can you please stop calling me that? We are married for Salazar sake!"

"You called me Granger; it is only fair to return the favor!" she spat with venom in her voice. "After all, that is no longer my last name; unless you suddenly forgot! But how could you? You remind me every bloody day!"

"I said it to get you to stop and listen to me; Hermione please, I don't want to fight with you." he claimed, lowering his voice.

Hermione took a few steps forward and stared him down. He could tell she was aggravated but really just wanted to know the truth. He knew she hated being kept in the dark but he didn't think she was ready to hear the rest.

She searched his eyes for some type of tell as he tried his best to hold back; failing miserably.

"Mione…please…I-"

"It's about Ron isn't it?" she asked, cutting him off and lowering her voice.

Realizing there was no point in pleading with her anymore, Draco did the one thing he was asked not to do; he told her.

"Yes."

"And what about him? Did he break out? Is he coming after me too? Tell me Draco!"

Letting out a breath, he looked Hermione in her amber filled eyes and silently pleaded with her one last time, to not make him tell. But of course, it was to no avail.

"No Mione," he began sadly "He didn't break out."

"What then?" she asked, still angry, while taking a few steps back.

"He…He-"

"He what? Spit it out!"

"He's dead…Ron Weasley is dead!" He studied her for a moment before continuing "He hung himself in his cell the day after our wedding. He somehow got a copy of the Daily Prophet announcing the wedding, and with you hating him for what he did…He was depressed apparently, and he thought he lost you in his life forever."

Hermione's face fell but she said nothing. It worried Draco that she didn't say anything and nothing about her features gave him any sort of clue as to what she was thinking.

"He left a letter for you but Potter refuses to give it to you until we get back. That is, if you are willing to accept it."

The waves of the sea crashing behind the Villa, was the only noise that broke the silence encircling the atmosphere around them.

"Hermione?" he tilted his head slightly, trying read how her reaction would go.

Finally taking in a deep breath, Hermione turned on her heels and walked away; leaving Draco standing on the front porch of their rented Villa, alone, and officially hating himself. But he hated Harry more in that moment; for putting him in the position that made love of his life, walk away from him.

He thought he could handle the anger he knew she would feel; the pain of losing one of her best friends, even if she was pissed at him. But her reaction and the silence, was not one he expected.

He watched as she continued to walk down the road alone and he contemplated running after her; scooping her into his arms and telling her to just let it all out. But he didn't, he wouldn't. She needed time to process everything. She needed time, away from him.

And that is when he realized something. He apologized for yelling at her earlier, but he never apologized for holding back information he knew would break her heart. He never apologized for keeping her in the dark and not telling her as soon as he found out. He just yelled at her until he couldn't take it any longer because he thought he was right. He never apologized, for hurting her; because that is exactly what he just did. He hurt his wife. The one person, he vowed he would never hurt again.

"I am so sorry, Hermione."

But Hermione, was far from hearing him.

 **10:36pm**

Draco sat on the edge of the couch with his face in his hands. His hair was a mess and he had worry lines forming on his perfect pale skin. He was filled with hatred of himself and he was strongly considering going out to look for Hermione. It had been hours since she left and he couldn't help feel troubled and anxious about if she was okay or if she was even coming back that night. He was distraught, to the say the least, and nothing he did helped ease his fear that his marriage was over before it even began.

A loud click of a door closing pulled him out of his self-loathing trance and he quickly looked up. Hermione stepped into the room holding her heels in one hand and looked at him expressionless. Draco stood up from his sitting position as she dropped her shoes and threw her handbag on to the floor next to them.

"Where have you been?" he demanded; not roughly or in aggravation, but in a caring and almost fearful tone.

Walking past him, she began making her way up the stairs, completely ignoring him.

Letting his shoulders sink, Draco sat back down on the couch and rubbed a hand down his face. He heard the water from the shower upstairs turn on and he began to grow inpatient. He wanted to know what she was thinking and he could no longer wait to find out if he, along with the help of Harry Potter, dissolved his marriage just days after the wedding. The wedding he let Hermione plan down to the last detail; the wedding he made sure was absolutely perfect so that she didn't have to worry about a thing. The wedding, that held all her Gryffindor friends and family, and none of his.

But it didn't matter that the wedding was perfect; that the Lilies were as white as they could be, or that she looked beyond beautiful in her simple yet elegant ivory gown. That the grass she danced on during the outdoor reception, to a song he never heard before, billowed in the breeze around her that made her appear to be floating on air.

Nothing matter anymore, because she would never forgive him for telling her too late.

Growing tired of his lack of courage to confront her, Draco stood back up and made his way up the stairs. He entered the bedroom and looked around. Hermione was not inside and none of the bags were packed. The shower continued to run as he moved to stand by the bed. He noticed her wand lying next to her jumper as they rested on the white comforter. Picking up her wand, he hoped that she would one day understand why he did what he did. And he hoped, that not seeing her luggage packed was a good sign; a sign that she wasn't leaving him.

Setting her wand back down, Draco walked over to the bathroom door, ready to knock, but a small noise stopped his knuckles, just inches from the hitting wood. Leaning in closer, he pressed his ear to the door and listened. A soft whimper vibrated through the wooden door causing him to slowly open it.

"Hermione?"

The large bathroom was filled with steam as the hot water poured from the shower head. He couldn't see behind the glass of the shower due to the condensation, but he knew his wife was in there.

Slowly walking up to the glass, he opened the shower door and saw Hermione sitting in the corner with her knees to her chest; still wearing her little black dress and soaked to the core.

"Mione." He sighed, and she looked up at him with red puffy eyes. "Mione, I-."

Hermione lowered her head back to her knees and Draco stood there for a moment, pondering if he should go to her; if she would even let him go to her.

"Fuck it." he announced aloud and walked into the shower; ignoring the spray of the boiling hot water hitting his skin, soaking his suit and shoes.

Leaning down, Draco scooped Hermione up bridal style, before sitting down in the corner of the shower. Maneuvering himself into a comfortable sitting position, he set her down on his lap and pulled her head into his chest. She didn't fight him like he thought she would, and she still never said a word. Instead, she began crying harder while she gripped his white button up in her hand.

Kissing the top of her head, he held on to her tightly as she grieved into him. He stayed silent the whole time, holding her, and giving her the support she so desperately needed. He didn't know what their future held in that moment; all he knew was that she needed him and he made her a promise. A promise that he would always be there for her, no matter what, and it was a promise he forever intended to keep.

After about an hour, the sobbing sounds of his wife could no longer be heard, but he continued to hold her; ignoring the pain radiating though his spine from sitting on the hard titled floor. The water was turning cold but he still never loosened his grip. And he wouldn't until she was ready.

"I'm sorry." was the first thing she said to him since she walked away.

Draco barley heard her over the pounding water hitting the floor below, but he lowered his head and laid a gentle kiss on top of her wet curly hair.

"Why are you sorry, love?" he asked tenderly "I should be the one who is sorry. And I am; I am sorry Hermione…I am so sorry." he hugged her tighter, refusing to let go; believing that if he did, she would slip from his grasp and leave him forever.

"For walking out on you…I should have stayed and…listened to you."

"You had every right to walk away from me. You have every right to leave me, leave our marriage."

Hermione tilted her head up and looked at him with sad, still red, eyes.

"Leave our marriage? Why would you think I would divorce you because of a fight?"

Draco looked down at her with a perplexed expression.

"Because I held not just one but two very important secrets from you- I didn't want to hurt you Mione, I swear I didn't."

"Draco," she leaned back to fully look at him "That is not cause to end a marriage. If you cheated then yes, if we couldn't work something out-"

"I would never cheat on you-"

"I didn't say you would. Draco, I am just saying, you would have to do something much worse than lie about your mother and Ron's death for me to leave you."

"I didn't lie." He stated firmly.

"Well you didn't tell me the truth. You said he was safely tucked away in Azkaban." She raised a brow.

"He is…He…he was a prisoner, therefore buried there; unable to be buried anywhere else."

Hermione searched his eyes before lowering her head back down.

"I need to go to Ginny. She must be devastated. She will need me."

"Hermione…That is exactly why Potter told me not to tell you until _after_ we return home. Ginny is in a delicate state right now. She doesn't want to have to worry about you on top of her family, her husband, and her unborn child."

"She won't have to worry about me."

"That is the biggest lie, if I ever heard one." He chuckled slightly. "Come on, we should get out of here, the water is turning cold and our fingers are turning to prunes."

"Do you have your wand?" She asked softly.

"My wand?"

Draco moved slightly to remove his wand from his pocket and in confusion, handed it over to her.

Hermione waved the wand in the air and cast a nonverbal spell, making the water warm again.

"I like it in here," she began, setting his wand on the wet title floor "it's soothing."

"Yes well, my clothes and spine would disagree with you." he joked.

"Oh…" Hermione moved off of his lap and kneeled in front of him as he adjusted himself to release the pressure on his tail-bone.

"Draco?" she looked him straight in his grey eyes.

"Yeah?"

"Please don't ever hide anything from me again."

"I won't, I promise."

"I can't say I forgive you _right now_ -"

"Hermione I-"

" _But_ ," she continued "I am willing to try and move forward. We are newlyweds after all and we should act like it. Not fight over something we can't change."

"You know, nothing that happened today is how I thought it would turn out. You didn't react the way we all assumed you would."

"I am not the same person you all knew me to be anymore. I have grown. After everything I have been through, and going through, it is basically expected." She shrugged.

"Hermione… I am sorry for saying that you can't take care of yourself. It's just…it is my job to protect you now and-"

"Draco-"

"And I got carried away with my stupid selfishness and I wasn't thinking when I said that-"

"Draco-"

"But I hurt you and I am sorry. I don't know why I yelled at you. I should have known that-"

"Draco!" Hermione announced, leaning forward and pressing a finger to his lips. "You're cute when you ramble…But do me a favor," he looked at her with a raised brow while her finger still pressed against him. "Shut up."

"Yes ma'am." He stated through her index finger.

"Don't call me ma'am."

With that, Hermione leaned forward and removed her finger; replacing it with her soft and supple lips. Draco was surprised to say the least. He wasn't expecting her to kiss him so soon. He thought she would at least need more time.

Hermione pressed deeper into him greedily and full of desperation. He lifted his hands instinctively to rest on her hips. But he pulled back, breaking away from her touch.

"What are you doing?" He asked in bewilderment. "I thought you didn't forgive me?"

Hermione smirked and leaned in once more to place a gentle yet quick kiss on his lips.

"Just because I am mad at you doesn't mean I can't have sex with my husband…Like I said, we are newlyweds…We should act like it."

"I just want to make sure that this is okay. I mean we just had a major fight and there are things we still need to talk about."

"Draco, if you don't shut up and unbutton your pants, I will hex you!"

He contemplated whether or not he should listen, or just tell her that right now was not the time, but there was no way he would, or even could, deny his wife. Although, her actions all day and her sudden change of heart left him worried. It wasn't like her to just give up on a fight so quickly, especially one so serious. It thoroughly boggled his mind.

Hermione hiked up her dress and straddled his lap, completely driving all thoughts of her strange behavior from his mind. She cupped the sides of his face with her hands and pressed a bruising kiss against his lips. The pressure of the kiss was painful, but Draco endured it, understanding that she needed this in order to distract herself from the consuming grief.

Surrendering to her needs, Draco reached a hand around her back and pulled her tighter against his chest; causing his dick to grow hard as it rubbed against her wet panties. He bucked his hips to bring them closer as he sought the pleasurable friction and parted his lips to offer her control. He didn't understand what had gotten into her but he was absolutely loving it.

Hermione thrust her tongue into his mouth and grinned when she felt him melt into her. She was both eager and demanding as she stroked her tongue against his. Draco let her take what she wanted, though she nearly suffocated him with her furious snogging. After all, he felt it was the least he could do after breaking her heart.

Sliding his hands up her back he reached for her zipper but she pushed him away and recaptured his lips with a ferocity she'd never shown before. She trailed her lips along his jaw as he ran his fingers under the hem of her dress and slowly lifted it up.

Leaning back from his touch, her hands flew to his pants and quickly unbuttoned them before jerking the zipper down in one swift move. He attempted to help her, but she slapped his hands away and continued pulling out his erect member. Draco didn't really know what to think anymore. She wasn't acting like herself as she practically jumped his bones to satisfy her own needs rather than because she loved him.

Not that he was complaining; he was loving every minute of it, but it wasn't like her. He knew grief affected everyone differently, so he thought that maybe this was just her way of dealing with everything.

As soon as he was free, she gathered her dress up and moved her panties to the side. She eased onto his dick slowly, causing each of them to let out soft moan as his full length began filling her warm wet core.

Draco rested his hands on her hips as she began bouncing her body up and down. Her hands gripped his shoulders, as she lowered her head and began kissing him hard once more. The temptation to take control and dominate her, stirred within him but he suppressed it, knowing she needed to lead for a change.

Hermione ran her fingers up his neck and through his hair, making the blood in his lower region throb mercilessly.

As she continued to ride him relentlessly, Draco met her body with hard thrusts of his own. Suddenly she slowed and began rocking her hips back and forth against him. The feeling of her hips slowly grinding against him was new and euphoric. They had never tried this position before as he was used to always being on top. This was the first time he had no control and the thrill was exhilarating.

Leaning forward and reaching up, Draco threaded his fingers through her hair and pulled her back slightly, breaking their heated kiss. He slowly began trailing kisses across her neck and chest but apparently Hermione had other ideas. Without any warning, she pushed him back against the wall as the warm water continued to rain down upon them.

His shock at her roughness was evident before she attacked his mouth again and rode him harder. But every time he tried to touch or caress her skin, she slapped his hands away. Draco no longer knew what to do but he was still extremely aroused by her take-charge attitude. Hermione released his lips and trailed pecks down his neck. Tentatively, he rested his hands on her thighs, hoping she wouldn't push him away again. The corners of his lips turned up into a small smile when she didn't protest, so he began rocking his hips to match hers, sending them both into over drive and over the edge.

Draco was in ecstasy as she rocked her hips on top of him, slowly bringing him closer to the point of which he'd burst. Hermione began bouncing faster than before, surprising him and making him cum before he was ready. Luckily her release followed his within seconds.

As he spilled into her, he let out a deep moan as she cried out in heavenly bliss. Both were panting hard as they came down from their high, resting their foreheads together as Draco moved his hands up Hermione's legs. Gripping her hips, he pulled her flush against him and held her close for the briefest of moments.

Before he knew it, Hermione pulled back from him, removed herself from his lap and stood up. After fixing her dress, she turned to the shower head and turned off the water. Draco stood up and fixed himself before slowly walking over to her and wrapping his arms around her waist. But as he finished enveloping his arms around her, Hermione turned around and backed away from him.

Draco furrowed his brow in confusion as he watched her face fall.

"Did I do something wrong? I thought we were having fun."

"Draco…I…" Hermione turned away from him for a moment, hanging her head low, before turning back to face him "I don't blame you for not speaking up when you found out, about your mother and…and Ron."

"I guess that much."

"Yes well… _that_ was to help me feel in control again."

"So you used me?" he asked shocked.

"I didn't use you." she claimed softly.

"You wouldn't let me touch you Hermione, but you led me to believe that you _wanted_ to have sex with me when you were using me to feel in control again!"

"Draco-"

"No Hermione! Once again you used me; first the kiss last year to get Weasley out of your head and now _this_! I am not your toy that you can just use when you are upset!"

"Draco," she cut in calmly "I listened to you, can you just…listen to me, please."

Draco ran his fingers through his hair in frustration and waved a hand for her to continue; despite wanting to scream at her.

"I don't blame you for hiding that information," she took a small step forward "from anyone else…but me."

Draco raised his eyes to her quickly, realizing that her next words were going to cause another fight.

"I am your wife…You are my husband. You are supposed to tell me things, not hide them from me. Especially with something so important…You took something from me by hiding it. And thinking about it, over this whole year, you took pieces of me."

"What are you talking about? I never took anything from you." he crossed his arms.

"I am not this person that you want me to be, Draco. I am not the kind of woman who does fancy dinner parties, or wears stylish dresses all the time," she looked down at her dress and waved her hands over it to emphasize her point. "I don't do sex on air planes and I don't…I don't allow people to take care of me- but I do it for you, to make you happy."

"I don't ask for those things-"

"But you do. You might not realize it but you do. And by doing those things for you, I realized how much you are taking away from me and how much you are trying to mold me to be…to be your rich wife. And I let you, I let you because I love you….You are a good man, Draco. You are smart and handsome and-and perfect. But you don't know how to be a husband." She paused and gazed into his eyes as he dropped his arms to his sides. "After the war, I was broken. I had been trying to fix myself for years and I thought after I told you what you meant to me, then I would be okay; even if you didn't reciprocate. Then the tornadoes happened and then your mother attacked me again. And I know I almost died, Draco, I know that. I have been trying to let that go but you keep making it hard for me. You keep bringing it up like I had any control over leaving you behind. The only control I have left in my life, was when I walked away from you and the sex we just had."

"I…I don't understand what any of this has to do with what I told you." he let out a sigh "Okay, I get that I hurt you but I never tried to take your control away."

"Since the war I was barely alive, Draco. I held myself together with tape and glue and I thought that finding you and being with you would help me, and it did." Hermione began sniffling as she tried to hold back her tears and it absolutely destroyed him inside "But then not even a week after our wedding, you held back-You didn't tell me that my best friend was dead as soon as you found out! I get that it must have been hard, but you listened to Harry…over being my husband."

Tears began to stream slowly down her flushed cheeks and all Draco wanted to do was reach out and wipe them away.

"Mione-"

"No Draco!" She swiped a hand through the air "I can handle you keeping secret your mothers release…but Ron." She held a hand to her stomach as she tried to prevent herself from fully crying "You took the last piece of me by withholding that, Draco. You broke me and I just…I can't forgive you for that. _You_ took that away from me."

"Hermione, I-"

"You don't know how to be a husband and I don't blame you for that. But you are supposed to be my number one. The best friend of all best friends. The one the trumps Harry and Ginny," she turned her head away from him, hiding what he knew was the pain she was feeling"…you should have told me sooner. After everything I have changed for you, Draco…I…I trusted you to do at least that for me."

"Her-"

Hermione brushed passed him and made her way to the bedroom. Leaving Draco standing alone in middle of an empty shower, soaking wet, and once again, full of self-loathing feelings. Shaking away the pain and picking his wand off the floor, Draco stormed out of the bathroom. This time he wasn't going to let her walk away.

"I know I should have told you when I found out, but me not telling you wasn't just about you!"

Hermione stopped getting the bed ready and looked up at him from across the room.

"How was it not about me?" she spat in anger.

"You punishing me because I was trying to protect you, fine-I can handle that. But you punishing me for also protecting your other best friends, and the stress we all knew you would cause trying to wait on Ginny hand and foot, is not okay!"

"What? What are you going on about?"

"Ginny is going through losing another brother, dealing with her family, and trying to help keep Potter from falling apart. Do you know how much stress that already is on a person? Add her worrying about you too, and she could lose her baby, Hermione!"

"I didn't-"

"Think about that!" he interjected harshly "Because you were too busy worrying about me hiding his death from you, than about how your friends are feeling or what they are going through! You want to punish me, fine, but don't you dare think that I was doing to keep you in the dark!" he let out a deep sigh and moved closer to the bed. "I was protecting both of you. My wife and _my_ friend. Do you even know how much pressure it was on me? Do you even care?"

"Of course I care."

"Look Hermione, I apologize for how I went about everything. I am beyond sorry, I really am, but hiding his death was not just about you. I love you, I really do; more than I have ever love anyone in my whole life."

"Draco I…I love you but I can't forgive you right now."

"I am not asking you to. I am asking you to understand why I did it. I know you are grieving but I have seen you grieve before, this isn't you. I don't know what else is going on with you but I would never purposely hurt you; at least not anymore. You should know that."

"I do know that, but it doesn't change the fact that you did."

"I didn't want to hurt you? I fucked up. I get that. But it wasn't my intention. I didn't know you would take the news the way you did. You're emotions are all over the place lately. I don't know how you will react to anything anymore. I can't read you!"

"Draco-" Hermione slowly moved away from bed, closer to his side.

"Bloody hell, Hermione, I just want to keep you safe…"

"I'm pregnant."

"And if I get tormented for doing that then so be it, but…wait," Draco shook his head and furrowed his brows, as he held up a hand, perplexed. "What did you just say?"

Hermione took another step closer to him and stared deep into his eyes.

"I'm pregnant."

A small smile began forming on her pretty little lips as Draco's face fell in terror. But before he had a chance to say anything, the room began to shake violently; causing Draco to reach out for Hermione. They held on to each other in pure terror, as furniture around them, came crashing to the floor.


	6. Chapter 6- Broken

Chapter 6- Broken

 **Tuesday, July 4th, 2006 11:42pm**

The room continued to shake as Draco held on to Hermione like it was the last thing he would ever do. The violent quake brought them to the floor and is scared him more than anything in his life. The earthquake only lasted for about fifteen seconds, but it felt like forever to him.

Sitting with his back against the bed, Draco held Hermione as tight as he could; frozen in fear and refusing to let go as he stared ahead at nothing. The traumatic memories of when Malfoy Tech. was hit, raced through his mind and it was the only thing he could focus on. He thought he was over the PTSD the healers at St. Mungo diagnosed him with. Apparently, he was wrong.

"Draco." Hermione whispered into his chest. "Draco, I can't breathe, please let go of me."

Snapping partially out of his trance, Draco released his hold on her and Hermione sucked in a deep breath. He didn't even realize he was holding on to her so tightly. All he knew was how terrified he was.

"Draco…" Hermione began as she lightly touched his arm. "Are you okay?

Completely breaking from his trance, Draco startled at her touch.

"What…the fuck…was that?"

"An…an earthquake." she claimed calmly.

Draco turned his head to her and furrowed his brows.

"An earthquake? A bloody earthquake? You said _this_ city wasn't on that fault-thing! How the fuck did an earthquake just happen?" he stated in anger.

"Well there are smaller fault lines around the area. I didn't think they would shift to the extent that they just did."

"You didn't- You didn't think? Are you kidding me!" he stated as he moved to stand up.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know they could get that strong." Hermione reached out a hand to touch him again.

Flinching away from her, Draco placed a hand on his forehead and began walking out to the balcony.

"Just…don't. I have had enough surprises of one day."

Opening the balcony doors, he stepped out and leaned over the railing. Taking in a deep breath he lifted his head and looked out to the dark black ocean that seemed completely unfazed by the shaking of the earth just moments ago.

Draco could hear Hermione bustling about in the bedroom behind him as she used her wand to fix the broken and fallen furniture. Ignoring her, he looked back to the ocean and lowered his head. A few minutes later, Hermione walked up next to him and he could practically feel the holes burning into his skin from her stare.

"What?" he stated in annoyance.

"Are you okay?"

Draco snapped his head up and gave Hermione a sour look.

"Do I look okay to you? What the bloody hell kind of question is that?"

Hermione lowered her head and turned to rest her arms on the railing.

"I'm sorry…for today. For everything. I guess the muggle saying is true; when it rains, it pours." She turned her head to him and let out a small sigh. "Can we…can we just start over?"

Letting out a breath through his nose, Draco backed away from the railing and took a seat on one of the patio chairs sitting behind him. He lowered his head to hands as he rested his elbows on his knees.

"I don't know, Hermione. I want to forget this day ever happened but too much shit just went down."

Hermione positioned her body to face him as her face fell to sadness.

"I just…Draco, I can't control my emotions right now, they have a mind of their own, just like I can't control the earth. I didn't know that quake would happen, let alone be strong enough to…to bring back painful memories."

"It was like I was back there." He interrupted with a whisper. "I felt the building crumble below us and I saw you fall again…It felt so real, Hermione." He raised his head from his hands and looked at her with somber eyes "I can't go through that again- I can't go back to the day."

Hermione took a few steps forward and crouched in front of him. She took both his hands in hers and tilted her head to meet his eyes.

"Draco, I am right here. I'm not going anywhere. I am okay."

"Are you?" he furrowed his brows once more. "Because you are so back and forth with everything, I am fully expecting you to snap on me again."

Reaching a hand up, Hermione cupped his face and raised his eyes to her.

"Why would I snap on you again? I said everything I needed to and I think you did too. We can fix this. We are Malfoy's after all." She smiled softly.

Draco raised his eyes fully to her before looking away in shame.

"Hermione I-" he shook his head and removed his hands from hers before standing up and walking back to the railing.

"Please tell me you're not hiding something else from me?" she asked in almost a plea.

"I can't do this."

"Do what? Be my husband? You're the one who asked to marry me, remember?"

"That is not what I mean." He claimed in aggravation and turned around to face her. "I don't want children…I never did."

Hermione looked taken back at his statement and Draco felt that he needed to further explain. But Hermione cut him off before he even had a chance to start.

"Why didn't you tell me this before you married me? Why say it now after I announce that I am carrying _your_ child?"

"I didn't really think it was relevant until now."

"But you love James like he was your own son! You spoil him like no other child I know!"

"Because he's not mine! I love the little demon spawn, yes, but that is because _I_ am not his father. I can't be a father, Hermione; I don't know how."

"No one knows how. It's a learn as you go process."

"I don't want to learn; simple as that! I am happy it being just us and I am happy not being responsible for how horrible that little offspring will turn out!"

"You think that I would let _my_ child grow up to be like you!" she spat.

Draco's eyes widen and his mouth slowly opened in shock at her statement. He couldn't believe that she would sink as low as to insult him like that. But not just insult him, hurt him; in the one place he was the most weakest.

Brushing past her, he made his way through the room and out the bedroom door.

"Draco!" she called out to him as she began chasing after him "Draco I didn't mean it like that!"

"Piss off, Hermione!"

"Draco, I didn't mean it the way it came out!"

Stopping at the bottom of the stairs, Draco spun his body around so quickly, Hermione almost ran into him as she stopped on the bottom step.

"You meant it exactly how you said it." his eyes darkened as his anger boiled over "Just because I don't want children does not give you the bleeding right to insult me like that! You have no idea the shit I went through growing up-"

"You were a bully, Draco. We all know that; that is all I meant by what I said." She expressed as she slumped her shoulders. "I just meant that I wouldn't let our child become one too."

"Read my lips, so that you can fully understand what I am trying to say. I don't fucking want children!"

"Well you don't really have a choice now do you!"

"You really think that I don't have a fucking choice here? I have more money than Merlin! You think that just because you're pregnant that I am going to want that thing! I can leave any damn time I want and be perfectly fine!

"Godric, you will never change! Who am I kidding! You will always be that self-righteous, pretentious, stuck up, ferret! Just like your father!"

"Wow…So that is what you really think of me?"

"To the bloody tee!"

Draco furrowed his brows once more and decided to not hold back anymore. He was done with everything, and he was done with her.

"Fine then. If that is what you really think, than why the fuck are we married?"

"You tell me!" she stated as she crossed her arms.

"You know what, Granger? FUCK OFF!"

With that, Draco turned on his heels and stormed into the living room.

"I will not! You don't get to tell me what to do!" she claimed taking the final step off the stairs.

Sucking in a deep breath, as he tried to hold back saying something he would regret, Draco turned back to her while he clenched his jaw tight.

"You want to go home so badly! Fine! Go right ahead! I won't stop you! In fact, why don't we both just go home and go our separate ways! I am sure my mother would be happy to hear about how her son finally got the clingy, know-it-all, bookworm, off his arm!"

"Merlin's beard! You are such a childish brat!"

"And you are nothing but a filthy little Mudblood!"

Hermione instantly froze and stared at him horrified. He knew he went too far but there was no taking it back. He was appalled at himself for stooping so low but he was tired of fighting and he was tired of no one understanding him. He just wanted to be left alone and nothing he said or did would make her stop arguing with him. He had no choice but to say the one thing he knew would get her to shut up.

"You want control again? Than do us both a favor, Granger. Go home…and leave me alone."

Draco took two steps back before turning on his heels slowly and walked out of the Villa. He headed towards the beach with his hands in his pockets, fully aware that he just ruined his own marriage. And he knew, there was absolutely no way of fixing it.

As he finished crossing the small pier, he began walking through the sand closer to the water. As the waves splashed across the wet beach, he took a seat near the edge of the water line and looked up to the sky in disappointment.

He couldn't tell Hermione that she was right and the reason he didn't want kids, or really wasn't ready, was because he was scared; scared of having them turn out just like him. Scared that they will end up having the same childhood he had growing up-no matter how hard he would try to prevent that.

Truth was, he did want that baby growing inside his wife's womb. But he couldn't feel excited because he knew it would turn out to be just like every other Malfoy in his family; a cold, cruel, slimy Slytherin. Alone and bitter, in a world where everyone was a fake friend or not a friend at all. His name alone would put his child in danger of either being bullied, or being the bully.

Lowering his head to his arms that were resting on his knees, Draco tried to hold back the gut wrenching heartache he was feeling.

He didn't want his child to grow up with hardships he faced, and after the war, he decided he would never have kids. He even went as far as to make sure that every night Hermione was spelled with a contraceptive charm to prevent pregnancy. She didn't know he was doing it and he knew it was wrong of him, but he couldn't risk it. It boggled his mind as to how she even got pregnant in the first place. He was always so careful and he never once forgot to do the charm on time.

As Draco continued to ponder over the major fuck up he called life, he was completely unaware of the small meteor shower happening above him. It wasn't until he heard loud pops of fireworks going off, that he was pulled from his thoughts and looked up.

He was confused as to why a meteor shower was happening when there were no indications that one was supposed to occur. But that was the extent of his thoughts on it, before he was brought back to the reality of his love life. This was a moment he should have shared with Hermione; where they would cuddle on a blanket as they watched the stars fall, and made love under the black sky.

He knew they weren't actually stars falling to the earth, but they looked enough like them to him. Either way, it was moment he was missing with the love of his life. The woman he basically forced to leave him. He had no idea if she would even still be there by the time he gained enough courage to walk back into the Villa. But there was absolutely no way she would forgive him for anything he did today.

And no amount of wishing on falling stars, was going to fix what he broke.

 **Wednesday, July 5th, 2006 08:33am**

Hermione stepped out of the long shower that soothed her aching muscles. But no matter how long she had stayed under the hot water, it refused to soothe her broken heart.

She didn't want to believe that Draco called her the one word he promised to never call her again. The word he told her not to ever call herself, and the one he even fired an employee over. But she knew he didn't mean it. She could tell in the way he said it; like he hated himself before the words even left his lips.

Last night brought out the worst in both of them, but Hermione was determined not to let one horrible night, ruin the rest of their life together. She knew Draco well enough to know that he was not trying to hurt her. She pushed him too far and she hated her hormones for that. She just wanted to move forward and put the past behind her.

After Hermione finished getting dressed, she made her way down to the kitchen to start breakfast. She brought out the eggs, bacon, and sausages; fully prepared to make Draco a full English breakfast as a way of saying sorry.

Once she was almost finished, she charmed the food to stay warm and washed her hands. She walked to the double glass doors leading out to the beach and grasped the handles gently. Taking in a deep and long breath, Hermione held it for a few seconds before letting the air out slowly. Opening the doors, she began walking down the wooden pier to the warm sandy beach.

She saw Draco in the distance, close to the water, throwing shells into the sea. She wondered if he slept out there the whole night; or if he even slept at all. She certainly had a hard time falling asleep without him next to her.

Coming up on him, she felt the cool morning breeze billow through her hair, helping calm the anxiety building with in her.

"Draco?" she began softly.

Draco flinched slightly at the sound of his name and turned his head to see who called for him. It was the first time in a long while, that Hermione had seen him so broken. His eyes were red and puffy and his cheeks were flushed and bruised; like he had been constantly wiping at his face with his sleeve. The grey's of his eyes were soft and filled with sorrow as his lips where cracking under the morning suns heat.

"What are you still doing here? I thought you would have been long gone by now." he stated with a small huff before turning back to continue throwing shells into the water.

"Did you sleep out here?"

He stayed silent and Hermione wondered if she could find a way to not start another fight. It was too soon and she was so tired of the stress it caused.

"I made breakfast for us." Her voice was low and kind as she prayed she wouldn't say the wrong thing to set him off.

"There is no us, Hermione. I made sure to fuck that right up." He shook his head in disappointment then angrily threw a small shell as hard as he could into the crashing waves.

Hermione took a few steps closer before flattening her rose covered sundress behind her and took a seat next to him. She crossed her ankles out in front her and started playing with the tips of her fingers. Draco looked over at her, and from the corner of her eye, she could see the confusion written all over his face.

"Draco, I love you." she began, finally finding the right words to say "I will always love you. Last night…well it happened and it shouldn't have." She looked up to meet his perfect grey eyes "I am sorry, for everything I said. I wish I could take it back, I really do. I didn't mean to push you so far."

Draco continued to stay silent as she watched him search her face. Taking another breath, Hermione turned to look out into the water and watched as a seagull dove for a fish far out into the vast, endless, blue, ocean.

"Last night was a mistake," She continued "one I hope never happens again…but we both know it will because that is what couples do, they fight… We are two complete opposites and I get that we are not always going to agree on the same thing." She turned back to meet his eyes with pleading ones of her own "I don't want that one mistake to ruin us. We have been through too much to give up on each other. I understand that you wanted to protect more than just me and I understand why you hid the truth from me. I also know that…that having a child is not something you want-"

"I'm not ready." He finally cut in.

"I know…I just-we just, need to talk it over, but not today; not while we are like this….I would like to know more of your reasoning behind your decision, but I want you to know that I am not giving up this baby. No matter how much you disagree."

Draco opened his mouth to retort but Hermione held up a hand to stop him.

"I don't want to talk about it all right now, okay? We have plenty of time to figure things out. For now, I just want you back. I want my husband back. I want us to be okay. I love you too much to walk away from you. It took me so long to get you, I am not willing to throw it all away because of things that are out of our control."

"But I called you a mud…a mud-"

"A mudblood." She finished for him.

She could almost feel his body tense up at the word and that is exactly when she knew he never meant to call her that foul name.

"I didn't mean it." he continued as he turned back to face the ocean and lowered his head. "I was angry and I felt bombarded by everything. It was the only way to get you off my back."

"Draco?" she lifted a hand and placed it between his shoulder blades "We were both in the wrong on how we handled everything last night, but," she moved her body to place herself on her knees and rested her hands on his bicep. "We love each other. We got married for a reason and it wasn't so we could let our first big fight destroy us. Can we find a way to move past this and be okay again?"

"I don't know, Mione. We both said some nasty things to each other."

"And I am truly sorry for-"

Draco held up a finger, stopping her mid-sentence.

"But you are right…I do love you. Mione, I will never stop loving you. But all I do is break things; my family, my friendships, my life…you. I keep finding way to fuck us up and I don't want to do it anymore."

"No one is perfect. I certainly am not. But Draco, we aren't broken…just, I don't know, slightly bent."

Draco chuckled softly and it gave Hermione a little bit of hope that they were moving in the right direction.

"Bent…but not broken." He repeated in a whisper.

"Bent, but not broken." She smiled "Come on, I have a full English breakfast waiting for you; your favorite."

Hermione began standing up and reached down to help him up. Once he was standing, she let go of him and began to turn to walk back up to the Villa, but Draco reached out a hand, stopping her in her tracks. As she turned back to face him, her lips met his and she quickly melted into him.

Placing her arms around his neck, Draco pulled her in closer. Lifting her up, Hermione wrapped her legs around his waist while their kiss grew deeper and more passionate. But they weren't fighting for dominance like normal. This time, they kissed like they were falling in love all over again. Like their first kiss; a kiss with meaning and depth to it.

But as their kiss grew stronger, Hermione could feel a burning sensation across her skin. Like someone was staring at them, refusing to look away. She broke away from Draco's lips and turned her head to the right, fully expecting someone to be standing on the beach. But no one was there and it confused her greatly.

"What's wrong?" Draco asked, setting her down gently.

Hermione continued to look in the direction she felt the piercing eyes, but still no one could be seen.

"Hermione? Love? What's wrong?" he asked again, but this time also looking where she was.

"I thought…I thought someone was watching us."

"There's no one there. But who cares," He grinned as he turned her face back to him and lowered his head "let 'em look."

Hermione tilted her head up and let his lips meet hers once more. But the strange feeling of being watched creeped up her neck and she couldn't bring herself to feel comfortable out in the open.

"Can we go back inside? Please? I am getting an uneasy feeling out here."

Draco raised brow at her but nodded his head and reached for her hand. Leading her back to the Villa, Hermione looked over her shoulder in fear that they were being followed, but still, not a soul other than them was present.

Making it back into the Villa, Hermione walked to the kitchen and began plating up the food while Draco poured them both some tea. Sitting down at the round glass dining table, they began to eat. But it wasn't long before Hermione felt a small tingle between her legs.

She knew most women didn't get a high sex drive until their second trimester, but normally that was due to feeling like garbage in the first, with morning sickness. She assumed it helped that she knew Draco would not care how gross she was to want her. He was always good at making her feel beautiful, even when she was sick as a dog.

But looking at her husband from across the table, she couldn't help but eye his strong athletic build. He wasn't overly buff; just enough to look like he worked out. He still had a Seekers body and no matter how hard she tried to look away from him, she couldn't. His white dress shirt, which he hadn't changed out of yet from the night before, was unbuttoned just enough that she could see the top of his chest.

All Hermione wanted to do in that moment was rip the shirt open the rest of the way, so she could stare in awe at his abs. Unconsciously, she bit her bottom lip while she undressed him with her eyes. Not even aware that Draco looked up from his plate and watched in confusion as she eyed him in a lecherous way.

Hermione rubbed her legs together as the sexual intensity of wanting him took over her body. Still holding her fork in her hand, she titled her head as she continued to imagine him taking her right then and there on the table.

Draco looked around the room before looking back to her with a perplexed look.

"Hermione?" he questioned, snapping her out of her lust filled daze.

Shaking her head, she stabbed her fork into a piece of sausage and took a bite.

"Yeah?" she asked in returned, trying to hide the fact that she was staring at her husband like he was on the front cover of Only Wizards Weekly. A new magazine Ginny was obsessed with; filled with very flattering moving pictures of shirtless wizard models.

"Um…are you alright?"

"Yeah. Why would I not be alright?" she asked with a small laugh, failing to pretend that nothing happened as she took another bite of her breakfast.

"Well uh, you were just staring at me like you wanted to rip me apart…but not in a bad way."

"Don't be silly, I was not."

"So I was just imagining that you were eye raping me and most likely picturing me taking you on this table?"

Hermione's head snapped up and her cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

"I-I um-What? No! Don't be absurd! This table is hardly sturdy enough to hold the weight of both of us and if I really wanted to have sex with you, I would just do it."

Draco pushed his chair back as he wiped his mouth with a napkin. He walked over to her and stood behind her as Hermione's stomach started to flutter. Bending down, he brushed his lips against her ear while he began running his fingers against the back of her neck; causing goosebumps to rise all over her body.

"That's what I was thinking." He whispered seductively in her ear "My wife would take what she wanted not just stare in awe."

Hermione gulped and quickly stood up. She grabbed both plates off the table and made her way to the kitchen sink.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She claimed while her pinkish cheeks turned a dark crimson.

She tucked her hair behind her ear while Draco smirked and began unbuttoning his shirt, showing his skin and causing her breath to catch in her throat.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she looked away and turned on the water to start cleaning up the dishes.

"Oh nothing." he shrugged "I need to get out of these clothes. They are all sandy."

Completely removing his shirt, he tossed it to floor and began to unbuckle his belt as he moved to the living room area. Hermione watched him as the tingle in her lower region grew stronger. She bit her bottom lip once more and tried her hardest to focus on something else. She knew he was baiting her and she would be damned if she was to give in to him.

Draco finished undoing his belt and ever so gracefully, pulled it from the loops and dropped it to the floor. She couldn't look away. His bare back faced her and all she wanted to do was pounce on him. She moved closer to him without even realizing she was doing do. She was now about two feet away from him and she could smell his scent as is seeped out of his skin. It was like an aphrodisiac to her and she wanted more.

Still facing away from her, Draco undid his pants and began pulling them down, leaving him in just his Slytherin green boxers. Kicking his pants to the side, he turned around and smirked when he saw how close she was.

Once more, Hermione bit her lower lip as she took in her husband's bare body.

"If you keep staring like that, I am going to have to think that you have gone mental."

But Hermione didn't hear him. All she heard was the pounding of her own heart as the desire for him grew past its peak.

Flinging herself on to him, Draco stumbled backwards slightly while his arms wrapped around her waist. She heard him let off a laugh and she honestly thought, it was the best sound in the world. Nothing compared to when he was happy and she wanted to keep making him happy for as long as she lived.

Pressing her lips to his, Hermione opened her mouth and let Draco flick his tongue around hers. After righting himself, Draco picked her up and carried her over to the couch. Gently laying her down, he pulled away from her lips and smiled lovingly down at her.

Hermione relaxed as he stared down at her; like he was seeing her for the first time. She opened her mouth to tell him how much she loved him, when Draco placed a finger to her lips and leaned down to her ear.

"I know you want control…but you really should just let me love you, Hermione."

She turned her head slightly, just like she did the first time he went to kiss her in the hospital. Their lips lightly brushed against each other as their breaths warmed both their skin. Hermione lifted her eyes to his before lowering them back down to his lips.

"Okay." She whispered softly.

"Okay." He smiled before connecting his lips to hers.

Draco pressed deeper into her and Hermione let off a small moan as she reached a hand up and began to run her fingers through his hair. She sucked in a breath as he ran his fingers down her leg and lifted the hem of her sun dress up.

She raised her hips as Draco hooked his fingers around her panties and began pulling them down. He tossed them to the side and put his hand back on her leg; caressing her skin, making goosebumps reappear all over her body.

He broke away from their kiss but kept his face just inches from hers as she parted her legs for him. He inserted a finger gently into her core, making her close her eyes and release a soft moan. As he began to tenderly pump his finger in and out, Hermione cupped his face and brought his lips fully back to hers.

Her breath became heavy as Draco continued to delicately please her with just a single finger. But the motion wasn't enough. She needed more and Draco, seemed to know exactly what she wanted, without her even saying a word.

He removed his finger from her center and broke the kiss while he positioned himself completely above her. He never removed his boxers as he pulled himself out and aligned himself against her. Hermione bucked her hips lightly, impatiently waiting for him to enter her.

Draco reconnected the kiss hard, causing her breath catch while leaving her lips bruised. In the same motion, he entered her slowly making her moan deeply into him. She noticed that he wasn't moving fast or in desperation like normal. This time, he was moving slow and compassionately; creating a tranquil sensation that ran though out her veins.

Hermione wrapped her legs around his waist as he entangled his fingers through her hair. He began humping against her, brushing her clit with every thrust as he began to make love to her. She had never felt so loved in all her life as she did in that moment.

After a few minutes of slowly pumping against her wet center, Hermione began rubbing her legs up and down his as he continued to thrust, creating euphoria across both their bodies, he lower his left hand and wrapped it around the lower half of her body to bring her hips closer to him. The pressure of his body against hers as he humped her slowly and softly, caused her to clench her legs tight as the vibrant tingling of her climax, rose to the surface.

Letting off a loud and sensual moan, Hermione fell apart beneath him. Draco only released slightly from her lips as she crumbled around him in ecstasy. And it was only seconds later, while she continued to ride on cloud nine, that Draco spilled himself into her.

Breathing hard into each other's mouths, they looked at each other as if that moment, was the last one they would ever have.

But the moment was interrupted by a knock on the front door. The couple looked at each other in confusion before Hermione slapped a hand to her forehead in realization.

"Crap! What time is it?" She asked lifting her head to try and look at the clock on the oven in the kitchen behind them.

"09:34." He replied looking up at the clock.

"Shit!"

"What?" He asked as he removed himself from inside her.

"I completely forgot about the Zoo!"

"The Zoo?...Oh shit!" he freaked as he stood up and grabbed his pants off the floor.

"Just…go get in the shower and I'll get the door."

Draco grabbed the rest of his clothes off the floor and ran up the stairs to the bedroom. Hermione stood up and moved to go to the door when she saw her panties on the floor. Another knock was heard so she yelled out that she would be right there, as she grabbed her panties and put them back on.

Fixing her dress and hair, she quickly grabbed her wand and cleansed the couch of their lovemaking. After she was done, she walked to the door and opened it.

"WE ARE READY FOR THE ZOO!" Steven yelled as the door swung open.

Hermione gave a large smile to the young Slytherin as she stepped out of the way to let the brothers through.

"Did you feel that earthquake last night, Hermione?" Steven asked as he skipped through the entry way to the living room.

"I did." She replied still smiling.

"It was wicked!" he claimed while turning on the TV and plopping himself on the couch.

"I wouldn't really say wicked." She stated, moving to the kitchen to finish cleaning up the dishes.

"Where's Draco?" Jason asked as he took a seat on the bar stool in front of the island.

"Oh, he is taking a quick shower. Long night. The earthquake brought back a lot of bad memories."

"Ah. I hope he's okay."

"He's fine…We are both," she paused for a moment and let out a small sigh "We are both fine." She smiled widely.

"Good…Anyway, Steve is excited for today. Thank you again for inviting us. I know having us tag along on your honeymoon isn't something most couples want."

"Don't be silly! We are happy to have you guys join us!...Now, I was going to pack lunches for everyone but I didn't know if there was anything you guys preferred or couldn't eat. We can also always grab lunch there. Draco has a new obsession over pizza. Yesterday was his first time trying it." she giggled.

Stevens jaw dropped as he turned to face his brother and Hermione in the kitchen.

"Whaaaaat? He has never had pizza before? How did he live life before then?"

"Have you never had the Grand Christmas feast at Hogwarts?" Draco announced from the top of the stairs.

His hair was still wet as he leaned over the balcony railing holding his shirt in his hand.

"Oh my Salazar have I! It is only the best feast during the whole school year! Next to the Welcoming feast that is!"

Draco let off a small laugh as he moved away from the railing and began walking down the stairs.

"Move over!" He flicked his shirt at the young boy and flopped himself on the couch. "What are you watching?"

"SpongeBob! He's a sponge that lives in a pineapple under the sea!"

"Who's that?" he asked pointing to the tall octopus looking character.

"Oh that's Squidward; SpongeBob and Patrick's neighbor. He doesn't like them very much, all he wants to do is play his clarinet in peace, but the best friends are always annoying him."

"He reminds me a lot of Snape." He chuckled.

"Draco, put on your shirt and let's get ready to leave." Hermione announced with a laugh.

"Yes dear." He stated sarcastically as Hermione watched him nudge Steven and roll his eyes.

Steven giggled and went back to watching his cartoon as Hermione finished packing up the items they needed for the day into her charmed purse.

"Do you have anything you want me to hold for you?" She asked Jason who was watching Draco and Steven bicker over the show.

"What? Oh…We have some stuff in the car, but I don't think it will fit in your purse."

Hermione raised a brow and tilted her head before she remembered that Jason was a muggle.

"My bag is charmed with a undetectable extension spell and a feather-light charm. It can hold anything."

"Really? That is brilliant! Okay, well I guess when we get to the car we can see what to take."

"Sounds good." She beamed "Draco, Steve, Are you ready?"

"Yes!" they both shouted in unison.

Once everyone was ready, Hermione grabbed her wand off the kitchen counter and put on her flats. Walking out the door, she locked the lock and turned to make her way Jason's rental car. Unbeknownst to anyone, that it would be the last time one of them, ever walked out that door again.


	7. Chapter 7- Zoo

Chapter 7- Zoo

 **Wednesday, July 5th, 2006 10:26am**

"That is so stupid!" Draco stated in frustration. "He has to be one of the worst evil villains I have ever seen!"

"But you have to admit Plankton's F-U-N song is brilliant!" Steven retorted as the group waited in line for entry tickets.

"That song is probably the only thing evil about him."

"That's not true! He has created a lot of evil things to try and get the Krabby Patty recipe."

"That's another thing! Who in their right mind is willing to spend their whole life trying to steal a secret recipe? Why not just make a better one, a different one? Way easier than trying to steal something that is already known to the mass of fish that live down there. "

"I," Steven began but paused and put a finger to his chin "I never really thought about it that way. It would make sense that if he actually stole the recipe and used it, than the fish would know."

"Exactly!" Draco smirked and crossed his arms.

"Are you two proud of your argument over a kids show?" Hermione giggled.

"Hey!" Steven turned his head to face her "This is a very important argument!"

"And it's not just for kids!" Draco cut in.

"Okay Draco," She smiled widely "Whatever you say."

"It's not…" He turned his head back to Steven and slumped his shoulders slightly "Right?"

"Of course not! Adults watch it too and love it just as much, if not more than kids! After all I am almost an adult and I watch it."

"Steven you just turned fifteen. That is hardly an adult." Jason chimed in with a laugh.

"In the wizarding world, seventeen is considered an adult and the trace gets removed….So really I am only two years away from that!"

Jason looked to Draco for help, but Draco just shrugged and pursed his lips.

"He has a point. He is closer to being an adult in wizarding law than in muggle law."

"You're no help!"

"Sorry." Draco replied with a laugh and turned to follow the now moving line to the ticket stands.

Once everyone was set with their entry tickets, the group moved into the front area of the San Diego Zoo.

"We should do the safari tomorrow." Hermione announced as she looked at the map of the zoo. "I didn't realize it wouldn't be in the same area."

"Not to worry." Jason stated as he wrapped an arm around his little brother. "There is plenty to see here. I doubt we will even be able to see everything today anyway."

"I wanna see everything!" Steven yelled out in excitement "Where should we start first? Can we see the reptiles?"

"Um, you guys can go see the reptiles." She laughed with a slightly disgusted look. "Although, it looks like it would be last to visit on the map. We start that way," She pointed to the right "then make our way around to the reptile exhibit over there." She then pointed to the left and looked up from the map.

"I'll pass on visiting it too. Was never big on those slimy animals."

"They aren't all slimy. That is a misconception." Draco stated a little annoyed.

"Okay well," Hermione interrupted "If we take Front Street then that will take us to the Koalas then to the Elephants. But if we take Treetops Way then we can see the monkeys and-"

"Hermione," Draco cut in "Let's just have fun. Pick a path at random and we will go from there."

"I choose this way!" Steven yelled out and started running down Treetops Way; dragging Jason along with him.

Hermione looked at Draco with a defeated expression and he knew it was because she hated not having a set plan. He walked over to her, placed his hands on her hips, and lowered his forehead to hers.

"Love, just let loose and have fun. Sometimes the best times, are ones not planned…Like this morning for instance." He winked.

"I know. I just wanted to make sure we saw everything." She stated rather sadly.

"And we will; even if I have to pay the Zoo to stay open a little longer just for us. I will make sure you get to see every animal."

"Really?" she asked lifting her eyes to his.

"Really." He smiled.

Hermione released a soft sigh and half smiled up at him.

"I guess I can let you do that. But just his once!" She held up a finger to add to her point "At least it's better than a boat I would never use."

Draco let out a light laugh before kissing the top of her head and took her hand in his.

"ARE YOU SLOWPOKES COMING OR NOT? I COULD HAVE CAUGHT A SNITCH BY NOW AND STILL HAD TIME TO SEE THE WHOLE ZOO!" Steven shouted at them.

Draco turned his head to the teen and raised his free hand to his mouth.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SLOWPOKE? I CAN OUT FLY YOU ANY DAY!"

"BRING IT ON OLD MAN!"

Draco scuffed and looked back to Hermione who looked to be trying not to laugh.

"Don't you dare laugh." He stated with a smirk.

"Come on," She giggled as she began walking away from him "wouldn't want to prove how much of an _old man_ , you are."

"You're older than me!" He shouted back, but she just shook her head and continued to walk.

Draco dropped his shoulders in defeat and placed his hands in his pockets before catching up to the rest of the group.

After twenty minutes of walking, the group stopped in front of the Gorillas in the Lost Forrest. Draco was already bored of half the animals they have seen already, but he was determined to at least pretend to be interested.

"Why are there only three Monkeys in this enclosure?" he asked after they stopped in front another exhibit.

Hermione looked at the information board before smiling widely and looked back to the primates.

"They are called Bonobo's," she began "They are endangered, but they are known for their ability to get along, and unlike humans or chimpanzees, they have never been observed killing one of their own. They are also very clever; much like Slytherin's. Very family oriented as well."

"Huh," he crossed his arms and watched as a baby Bonobo nestled itself into its mothers arms. "I actually think I like these guys; they're kind of cute."

"You don't have to keep pretending to be having fun, Draco."

He looked down at his wife and met her bright amber eyes.

"I'm not pretending-"

"You are…but it's okay." She began, turning away from him "I know you would rather go see the reptiles."

"Hermione," he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and turned her slightly back to him "I was pretending at first, but I'm not pretending anymore. Some of the animals here are actually pretty interesting."

"So it's not because these primates are also known for having a lot of sex?" she smiled and pointed to the enclosure with her thumb.

"I-what-no…they have a lot of sex?" he asked while arching a brow.

Hermione let off a light laugh and wrapped her arm around his neck.

"A lot." She grinned before standing on her tip-toes and placed a small kiss upon his lips.

"Get a room!" Steven announced as he stepped up to them.

The couple lightly laughed before stepping away from each.

"So when are you two having kids?" Jason questioned with a wide smile. "Bet they are going to be a handful. Adorable, but a handful."

Draco's face fell as his body went rigid and Hermione looked down to the floor.

"What? Did I say something wrong?"

"Oh no, of course not." Hermione began "It's just…I just…we just-"

"It's a long story." Draco was finally able to say, cutting Hermione off.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to be contentious. I was just asking."

Hermione waved a hand in the air and stepped away from Draco.

"No, it's okay. We just…have a lot to talk about. But now is not the time." She faked smiled through her sadness.

"Can we go see the Elephants now? I'm bored of the Monkeys."

"Yes, Steve." Hermione began as she looked at the map "And we can even go see the reptiles before we leave. I think we have enough time for everything if we head there now…Oh." She slumped her shoulders and brought the map closer to her face.

"What?" Jason asked while putting his hands in his pockets.

"The reptile house is closed for renovations. It says here they are moving the animals out tomorrow night."

Draco's face fell to disappointment but it was nothing compared to the sadness Steven looked to be feeling.

"I'm sorry." she stated sadly.

Steven shrugged his shoulders and turned to walk down the pathway. Draco knew that sort of disappointment and he felt obligated to make it up to the poor teen.

After about two hours of walking around and taking a break for lunch, the group found themselves in the Norther Frontier area, staring at Polar Bears. Steven seemed to have perked up a bit but he still looked pretty down from not being able to see the reptiles.

"Hey Steven!" Draco called out.

Steven moved away from the glass where he and a bunch of other people were watching a female Polar bear swim, and walked over to Draco, Hermione, and Jason.

"Why don't you and I go take a look at the Koala's while Hermione and Jason go to the Lions."

Hermione looked up at him in confusion and excused them both before dragging Draco a few steps away.

"What are you doing?" she asked in a whisper.

"The kid needs some cheering up. I figured since neither of us really cares to see the Gryffindor mascot, I would take him to see something else."

"You mean something else closer to the Reptile House?" she questioned crossing her arms.

"No."

"You used to be a better liar."

"Okay fine, yes. I just think it would cheer him up."

"Draco, you can't sneak into that exhibit." She yelled in a whisper.

"Why not? He really wanted to see them and he doesn't have anyone his own age to hang out with here. I am also the closest thing to the wizarding world that gets him."

"I'm from the wizarding world too." She stated a little dejected.

"But you're not Slytherin, Hermione. He needs someone who actually wants to see reptiles with him."

"But sneaking in? Why can't you take him to see the reptiles back in London?"

Draco tilted his head and let out a sigh as he stared Hermione down.

"What? Why are you starting at me?"

"Because you're being a hypocrite."

"I am not!"

"Mione, you invited them on our honeymoon for the day and told me it was a way to repay Jason for saving your life. So why can't I do this one thing for his brother to cheer him up?"

She opened her mouth to retort but stopped and appeared to think about it for a moment. She then slumped her shoulders and looked up at him.

"Fine…but use the disillusionment charm, okay? I don't want you getting kicked out because you couldn't properly break in to a closed exhibit."

"Do you not know me at all? Besides, it's not like I am breaking in to Gringotts or anything." he smirked as he back away from her and started making his way over to the brothers.

"You had to bring that up didn't you?"

Draco winked at her before turning on his heels and putting his attention back on Steven.

"So," he continued speaking while ignoring Hermione's glare. "What do you say? I mean, if it's okay with Jason."

"I'm okay with it." Jason shrugged.

"I don't really want-" Steven started, but stopped when he saw the expression Draco was giving off. "to see the Lion's anyway, so sure."

"Great!" Draco clapped his hands together "Let's go!"

He turned to Hermione and kissed her forehead before waving a hand at Jason and walked away with Steven in tow.

After making it to Park Way, Draco turned right and began head back down the previous way they came.

"The Koala's are that way." Steven pointed out as Draco turned around and began walking backwards.

"Oh I know."

"So why are you going that way?"

"Because we are not going to see the Koala's."

"So where are we going?"

"You'll see." He smirked and turned back around.

Steven caught up to Draco and continued to walk beside him until they got to the primates again.

"Is it just me," Steven started "or do the Monkeys seem to be acting weird?"

"They are Monkeys, they always act weird." Draco replied as he continued to walk.

Steven caught up to him and grabbed his arm, stopping him mid stride and catching him off guard.

"No, look."

Draco turned his head and instantly saw the Orangutans jumping from branch to branch, but not in a playful manor, as the birds in the Aviary behind them, were also acting very strange; almost as if they were in fear of something.

"Huh, that's a little outré." He mentioned as he put his hands in his pockets and looked on at the bizarre scene before him.

"That is putting it lightly."

"Whatever, they are just animals." Draco shrugged before he turned on his heels and resumed his pace down the path.

Once they made it to the exit, Steven once again stopped Draco in his tracks.

"We are leaving? Just because I was a little upset about the reptiles being closed, doesn't mean I wanted to leave."

Draco turned around and faced the young Slytherin.

"Who said anything about leaving?"

"Well that _is_ the exit."

"And your point?" Draco asked crossing his arms.

"I really have to spell it out for you? We are here," Steven pointed to the ground with both his hands "and the exit it right there, which is the direction we are headed in. So unless you are planning to go to the car for some sun screen-"

"Do I look like I need sun screen?" he questioned with a raised brow.

"Draco, where are you taking me? If we are leaving, I would rather go back to see the Lion's with Hermione."

"We aren't leaving; just taking a detour."

"Detour to where?"

"Just…trust me."

Steven rolled his eyes but seemed to trust Draco and continued to follow him. Once Draco got them to the area he wanted, outside of the Zoo, he pulled out his wand and looked around to make sure no one was looking.

"What are you doing? Are we even allowed to be back here?" Steven asked while also looking around.

"Have you ever used a disillusionment charm before?" Draco began, ignoring the boy's questions.

"No, we didn't learn it yet…Why?"

"Because we are about to sneak into the zoo."

"What? Why? We were just in there."

"You ask a lot of questions...Just hold still."

Draco tapped his wand on Steven's head and wordlessly cast the charm, turning Steven practically invisible. The effects were not as good as having Harry's invisibility cloak, but Draco figured it was better than nothing. Once the spell fully took over the young muggle-born's body, Draco then waved his wand around himself and repeated the charm.

"Wicked!" Steven claimed in excitement.

"Keep your voice down." Draco whispered "We don't want to raise suspicion."

"Sorry…But um Draco?"

"Yeah?"

"Where are you?"

"Hold out your hand."

Draco assumed he did as he was told and reached out his hand to grab Steven's. Luckily neither of them moved from the spots they were originally standing in so it wasn't hard for him to find the teen.

"I am going to levitate us over the gate and bushes, okay; just follow my lead." They both stood there for a few quite seconds before Draco continued "If you are nodding your head I can't see it."

"Right, sorry. Okay."

Draco led them both over the wall of the Children's Area and into the Zoo, just like he said he would, and guided Steven to the front of the Reptile House.

"What are you doing? This place is closed." Steven whispered.

"Alohomora." Draco whispered as he pointed his wand at the handle, and the door to the house creeped open. "Come on."

"No, are you crazy? We are going to get in trouble. The sign says it's closed." Steven stated as he pulled Draco's hand back.

"We are Slytherin's Steve. We follow our own rules. Besides, I have done a lot worse when I was your age then sneaking into a muggle building; come on, let's go."

Convincing the boy to follow him inside was the easy part for Draco, keeping him safe after they entered however, would be a hell of a lot harder.

 **01:36pm**

Hermione let out a deep sigh as she watched Draco leave with Steven before turning back to look at the Polar Bear still swimming gracefully in the icy water.

"Are you okay?" Jason asked, interrupting her thoughts.

"I'm fine."

"You're not fine. Something is bothering you."

"I'm fine!" She claimed; harsher than she wanted "Can we just go see the Lions now…Please."

"Sure," Jason replied, a little thrown back "uh, this way." He pointed to the right with his finger as he kept his perplexed gaze on her.

The duo walked out of the Norther Frontier area and made their way to Elephant Odyssey. They stopped and looked at an intimidating Mountain Lion, before heading down the path to the 'King of the Jungle'.

Once they got there though, Hermione seemed almost instantly drawn to the large beast that was pacing back and forth on an enormous rock. Jason was talking to her but Hermione could no longer hear him as she stared at the feline with curiosity. When the lion turned, their gaze connected, preventing her from looking away. It was almost like the warm golden embers of the lions eyes were sucking her in while also staring deep into her soul; reading her.

Hermione couldn't understand what was happening, but it was like she knew the Lion; like she grew up with him as part of his pride; felt all his pain and failures, but also his love and his triumphs. She felt safe as the intensity of its energy swept through her.

She took a step forward while tilting her head, and the lion followed suit; its large brown shaggy mane billowing in the breeze as it took a step closer to the glass that many families where standing in front of.

But the lion seemed oblivious to the small children yelling and screaming in excitement and continued to stare deep into Hermione's eyes.

"Hermione?" Jason touched her shoulder when he realized she wasn't listening to him. "Hermione, are you okay?"

Hermione still didn't hear him as she took another step, then another, then another, as she got closer to the enclosure. She couldn't pin point what it was exactly that put her into the trance she was in, all she knew was that she had to get closer to the African King. She lightly pushed passed a few children and adults and stepped up to the glass pane separating her from the wild beast. Not once did their eye contact break as the Lion did the same.

They were inches from each other with nothing but a clear wall of heated liquid sand between them. Hermione slowly crouched down and raised a hand, placing her palm against the cool glass; and to her surprise, the lion lifted a paw and placed it in the same area her hand rested. Her eyes momentarily directed away from his, to his paw, which matched up with her palm perfectly.

The family's that were surrounding the Lions habitat, backed away while watching in amazement of the scene happening before them. Jason took a few steps forward, placing himself only a few feet away from the Gryffindor witch.

Hermione lifted her gaze back up to the male lions, whose eyes were now glowing a beautiful golden brown; eyes she was so sure she recognized. A thought entered her mind that forced her to lightly gasped in astonishment while her mouth parted in shock. A single tear escaped her eye and trickled down her rosy cheek as she took one last look into the animal's eyes.

"Ron?" she whispered gently.

The lion lowered it paw and bowed its head; pressing its forehead against the glass.

Hermione quickly removed her hand from the glass and clasped it over her mouth. She stood back up and backed away in fear and surprise.

She knew it was impossible but the proof was right there in front of her. She couldn't deny that she felt a very strong connection to the creature before her, nor could she deny what just happened. Quickly turning on her heels, Hermione rushed passed a very confused Jason and ran to the closest bathroom.

Hovering over the sink, she rocked back and forth on her heels while trying to get her breathing under control. She turned on the faucet and began splashing cold water on her face to help calm her down but it only worked a little. Grasping the sides of the sink, Hermione ignored the women walking behind her and looked up at her reflection in the mirror.

"It wasn't him, he's dead, he is dead and he is not coming back." She claimed to herself. "Get it together Hermione, it couldn't be him. Ron is dead."

"Ron Weasley?" Jason asked, not seeming to care that he just walked into the woman bathroom. "Ron is dead?"

Hermione's head snapped to him in shock. Her breathing became heavy again as she tried to hold back the tears she knew would come. Jason looked to have known that she was about to break down in the small lavatory and quickly pulled her into a hug. Her face sunk into his plain blue tee and she could no longer hold back the pain she was feeling.

Jason hugged her tighter for a few more seconds as they both ignored the stares that were coming from irritated women trying to use the rest room.

"Come on, let's get out of here." Jason whispered as he reached over and grabbed a few paper towels before guiding them both out of the bathroom to a bench just outside.

Hermione calmed down slightly as she sat down on the bench and took the paper towels Jason handed her. He took a seat beside her and inhaled a deep breath.

"I won't pretend to understand what you are going through," he began "but I do know that it can't be easy to lose a best friend." he sighed heavily before turning to face her "I don't know what happened back there, I am assuming it had something to do with magic, but I know a connection when I see one Hermione, and you definitely had one with that Lion. As strange as that may sound."

Hermione wiped her nose and lifted her head to look at the young man sitting next to her.

"I don't know what happened."

"You don't have to talk about it. I am sure I probably wouldn't be able to comprehend the magic behind…well whatever that was." He took one of her hands in his "But if you want me to go get Draco I will. He should know what happened. You look like you really need him right now."

She shook her head and once more wiped her nose.

"I don't want to burden him. He is already going through a lot."

"What do you mean? Last I heard only two-thirds of the Golden Trio are friends with him. I thought he and Ron hated each other. Besides, he is your husband, I am sure you would never be able to burden him even if you tried."

"That's…It's complicated."

"So let's uncomplicated it." Jason stated as he released her hand and fully turned towards her.

He lifted a leg and tucked it under the other while resting his arm on the back of the bench.

"I don't want to bother you with our problems." She claimed, lowering her head to look at the paper towel she was fidgeting with in her hands.

"Hermione," he tilted his head to look at her face "we are friends aren't we? And you let us come with you and Draco today even though you didn't have to. I also know you let Draco take my little brother to the reptile house just to cheer him up. I couldn't help over hearing you two bicker about it…I owe you at least a listening ear for that."

"You don't owe me anything. You helped-"

Jason held up a hand and stopped her.

"Please don't say I helped save your life. I am not a hero. Not like you or your friends. I was a trainee, and a terrible one at that. I only did what I was told and your husband actually had to walk me though taking his blood to help you. If anything Draco is the hero…not me. I was simply there because emergency services were short staffed during that chaos."

"But-"

"But nothing. I wish I could take credit for saving you, Hermione, I really do, but I can't; that was all Draco's doing, and the help of actual qualified firefighters and paramedics…Look, I know we don't know each other, well I mean I know all about you because my brother idolizes Draco, but I would like to get to know you. Tell me what is bothering you. Let me actually be helpful."

Hermione lowered her head back down as she contemplating telling a perfect stranger about her marital problems.

"I know there is something," he continued "you both seemed rather odd today and when I brought up children you both acted very outré."

Hermione took a deep breath in and looked out to the mass of people wondering around Zoo like life was great; oblivious to the fact that her world was falling apart and they didn't even care. They laughed and felt joy as they looked at the animals in wonderment, while she barely held her emotions together.

"Can we go see the Elephants now…please?" she asked, ignoring Jason's plea to help her.

She could see Jason eyeing her skeptically from the corner of her eye, but she stood up and began walking away. She heard him sigh but he got up and followed her as she made her way over the Elephants. She knew she should have talked about what she was going through but she didn't feel up for it right now. The last thing she wanted was for her to break down again in the middle of the Zoo and have the poor man comfort her, when really, it should have been Draco. She just wanted her husband, but even more so, wanted her husband to want the child growing inside of her.

Hermione lowered her head and touched a hand to her belly as she continued to walk; completely unaware, that she would soon have to fight to keep herself, her baby, and muggle friend, alive.

* * *

 **AN- Sorry this chapter is shorter, I was actually planning on making it longer but it didn't fit the timeline I wanted for each chapter. Anyway I hope you still enjoyed it. I researched the Zoo's map and watched live cams to try and get everything right. Now since this story is based in 2006, not everything will be accurate since I couldn't get a map from that year lol but I tried my best and did have to make a few changes. If you see any errors about the location please let me know so I can fix it! :)**


	8. Chapter 8- Tremble

Chapter 8- Tremble

 **Wednesday, July 5th, 2006 02:03pm**

Hermione leaned over the railing to get a better view of the Elephants grazing in the distance. She was trying everything she could to not give into the temptation to talk about her feelings with Jason, but she kept feeling his eyes watching her, like she would break any moment.

She couldn't explain what happened with the Lion, not because Jason was a muggle, but because she herself didn't know what happened. The experience was all new to her and she had never encountered any magic like it before. Sure she had felt like her loved ones, who perished during the Battle of Hogwarts, were somehow watching over her, but that experience with the large cat was so different, unique, and very strange. There had to be an explanation and the one person she knew might have the answer, was back in England, still grieving over the loss of their twin.

Stepping back slightly while still holding onto the railing, Hermione sighed as she tried to concentrate on the on the animals before her with little use. She just couldn't get the Lion out of her head. More so however, she couldn't get the ideas of how her future was going to look, if Draco couldn't accept their child.

"I really think you should let me grab Draco for you." Jason cut in on her thoughts as he leaned on the railing with his elbows and looked out to the vast open enclosure.

"I don't want him."

"Why not?" he asked turning his head to her "Maybe he could help out figure out what happened with the Lion."

"That isn't why I don't want him." she stated a little somber.

"Hermione, I don't mean to pry but you don't seem to be having any fun here and you don't want your husband. If you would rather just go, then we can go, and you can figure all your issues out with him. I don't want to drag you around the whole rest of the zoo if you are not feeling up to it."

"No…No, I don't want to leave. I am enjoying myself it's just…oh I don't know, things between Draco and I…it's complicated and no matter how much I want to fix it, I can't. I can't do anything because everything rests on his decision."

Jason raised a brow in curiosity and Hermione felt she said too much. She turned back to look at the Elephants and licked her lips before folding in her bottom one. Jason took a second as he continued to look at her before continuing the conversation.

"Is it because he doesn't want children?" he finally spoke, in a kind manner.

Hermione's head snapped to him in shock and her eyes grew wide in confusion.

"How did-how did you know that?" she asked as she searched his face for any sign of a tell.

Jason pinched his lips together and nodded his head slightly before turning back to the enclosure.

"I took a guess, but it wasn't hard to figure out." He turned his head back to her "When I asked you about having children, you looked extremely sad and on the verge of tears while Draco, well his whole body tensed up. I could see the look in his eyes that he was scared."

Hermione's jaw quivered slightly as she tried to hold back the tears trying to reform in her eyes. She should have been more surprised at anyone knowing her personal business, but realized that she and Draco were both pretty bad at hiding their reactions when asked.

"You're pregnant…aren't you?" he asked softheartedly when she didn't say anything. "That is the decision you are waiting on him to make?"

Hermione took in a small breath and nodded her head before letting it out slowly; still unsure of what to say.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked "I know you don't know me very well but…I think having an outside opinion sometimes helps. People can be blind at times when it comes to their own relationships. I have seen it happen too many times when called out to tend to the wounds of domestic disputes turned violent. "

"I-I uh…I think…it would be nice to have someone to vent to." She finally stated "Just…please don't tell Draco I told you about our problems."

"Your secret is safe with me." He smiled "So…Well first, congratulations!"

Hermione let off a faint smile as she looked down to the ground.

"Thanks."

"How far along are you?" he asked looking from her belly to her face.

"Six weeks. I found out right before I walked down the aisle when Ginny, uh Ron's sister, was having trouble zipping me into my dress. She performed a spell to see if I was and ever since I had been trying to find the right moment to tell Draco…but something always came up."

"I am guessing when you finally told him, he didn't take it very well."

She shook her head no and let out a deep sigh.

"I just, I thought he would be happy, you know? But it ended in a fight and I don't know what to do. I refuse to give up the child just because he can't man up and want it."

"Hermione?" Jason moved his head to look at her face better. "Did you ever question why he doesn't want kids?"

Hermione opened her mouth to say yes, but realized she didn't. She was so caught up in trying to make him feel like crap for not wanting the child that she never stopped to ask him why he wasn't ready.

"I figured as much." He continued "You of all people know him better than I do, but from what my brother has told me, after he read the 'tell-all' book about that Malfoy's, I can see where he is coming from."

"What? How could you possibly see where he is coming from?" She questions in a harsh tone.

"Hey, don't bite my head off." He claimed holding his hands up "Just hear me out, alright?"

Hermione slouched her shoulders once more and waved a hand for him to continue.

"The poor bloke has not had an easy life. Did you know his father used to beat him when _you_ would score higher than him in class? Or that he was forced to join the Death Eaters against his will? It wasn't just to appease his father. That, Volde guy, threatened his family. He now has no friends or family left. The way I see it, he doesn't want his new family to have the same life he did. And before you say it, it is not as easy as it sounds to change ones way of thinking. He has come a long way, Hermione, from the boy he used to be. He's just scared. I don't think that he doesn't want the child you bear, I think his fear of failure put his walls back up, so that he doesn't get hurt, or disappointed again."

"Why hasn't he said any of this to me? And why wait until after we are married to tell me?"

"Cut the man some slack, he just got a few friends and someone who finally loves him for him and not his money; the last thing that was probably on his mind was kids. But come on, be fair, did you ever even ask him before getting married, if he ever wanted kids? Or his thoughts on having them?"

"I…No." her face fell as she began to register everything he was saying.

"I think you are being a little too hard on him. Give him some time and be supportive. He'll come around eventually. You just have to go at his pace."

Hermione lowered her head back down and took a deep breath in.

"You're right. I have been so focused on trying to find a way to get him to want this baby, but I never really thought about all that. I mean, I know he would never leave me, so I should know that he would come around to the idea one day…I just-"

Hermione stopped as her hands began to rumble on the bar. Jason seemed to feel it too and looked down as well.

"What the-"

But he never got to finish that sentence. The whole ground below them began to shake violently, causing the duo to grab a hold of the railing for support as people screamed in terror. Families began running for the exit as the quake grew dangerously stronger.

Jason stood up while using the bar and reached out a hand to Hermione. She grabbed a hold of it and he pulled her up and away from the railing. They ran as fast as they could and as much as the shaking earth would let them, before they came to a stop about thirty feet from where they started. Jason quickly pushed Hermione under a round metal table in front of the Sabertooth Grill and then crawled in after her.

Hermione thought the earthquake they felt before was large, but she had never thought she would feel one as bad as what they were experiencing now. It seemed to go on forever as it caused light poles to come crashing to the ground and signed to fall off of building. To say she was terrified was an understatement.

She wrapped her arms around the center leg holding the table up as the earth continued to convulse in agitation. But just as quickly as the earthquake started, it stopped.

Breathing heavily into to pole of the table, Hermione kept her eyes squeezed shut while still holding on for dear life. She didn't even notice that Jason was wrapped around her, also holding on to the table, until he let go and looked around.

"Hermione?...Hermione, it stopped, it's okay, you can let go of the table now."

Hermione slowly began opening her eyes and looked around as Jason began making his way out from their hiding spot. He turned around once he was fully out and reached out a hand to help her. She hesitantly reached out for him and allowed him to help her up.

Once she was all the way out, a loud siren began to blare throughout area with an announcement to evacuate the zoo.

"Do you think that was an aftershock?" Jason asked yelling over the siren.

But Hermione could barely hear him. She looked up with her hands covering her ears and noticed that they were right underneath one of the poles holding the speaker for the siren.

"We have to get out of here!" Jason tried to yell over the sound again.

"WHAT?" she asked looking back to him.

He cupped his hands next to his mouth and shouted.

"WE HAVE TO LEAVE!" he repeated.

"BUT DRACO AND STEVE! WE CAN'T LEAVE THEM HERE!'

"THEY WILL BE FINE. I AM SURE THEY ARE ALREADY AT THE EXIT SINCE THEY ARE RIGHT NEXT TO IT!"

Hermione nodded her head, but she couldn't help feel that something was wrong. Although, she didn't have time to dwell on the ominous thought before Jason grabbed her hand and began dragging her towards the exit. As they ran to the main gates, Hermione took notice of the surface cracks running throughout the pathway while they maneuvered around fallen light posts and trees. She worried about the two Slytherin's and prayed to Merlin that they made it out safely.

Reaching the outside of the exit, Hermione and Jason began looking around for the wizards, but could not find them anywhere. The sirens finally stopped so they started shouting for them, but it was still to no avail over the mass chaos surrounding the place. Hermione began to panic and started to push passed people in hopes of catching a glimpse of the blonde Slytherin Prince. But he was nowhere to be found.

"We have to go back!" she stated as she turned sharply and grab a hold of Jason's arms.

"I agree!" He claimed and looked around for a way back in. "We can't go back that way; they are not going to allow us! We have to find another way around!"

Hermione nodded her head and looked around at the entrance. Her thoughts rested on going left and through the Zoofari Party Area before they were interrupted by the sight of swaying trees. But before she could think anymore of the strange behavior, the earth, once again, began to shift.

 **02:55pm**

Draco began to awaken from his dazed state and came face to face with a terrified young teen.

"Oh thank Salazar you're awake!" Steven announced in relief.

"What happened?" Draco asked groggily while raising a hand to touch his forehead.

"An earthquake. I don't think it was an aftershock since it was stronger than the one from yesterday and that aftershock for all we know, could have happened when we were all sleeping. I think this one might have been a main shock and the one from yesterday a foreshock. But that doesn't happen in this area so it might have just been a main shock? But then that would mean that the tectonic plates are shifting harder than normal; like it is mimicking the San Andrea's fault line, which is impossible. Unless we felt the after effects of that fault line here… _OR_ multiple fault lines are activating at the same time!"

"What _the_ _bloody hell_ are you rambling about?" Draco interrupted in annoyance as he looked down at the blood on his fingers.

"Earthquakes come in three parts."

"What?" Draco questioned with a perplexed expression as he tried to stand up with a loud groan.

Steven rolled his eyes and stood to help Draco up.

"Earthquakes come in three parts; foreshock, main shock, and aftershock. The foreshock is extremely rare for this area and usually can occur from a matter of minutes, to days, or even longer, before the main shock. The main shock is the largest earthquake in a sequence, sometimes preceded by one or more foreshocks, and almost always followed by many aftershocks."

"I have no idea what the fuck you are talking about. What the hell happened to my head?"

"Oh, well during the earthquake one of the wooden beams from the ceiling snapped and knocked you out. I think it was old wood."

Draco looked up at the empty space where half a beam laid before looking back down to his blood covered fingers.

"I think you'll be okay, it looks like it is only a minor gash. And you are talking just fine. You might have a concussion though, so just don't fall asleep or hit your head again until you can get looked at."

Draco turned his head to the young boy and raised a brow in confusion.

"Brother is a paramedic, remember? He has taught me a lot of muggle first aid."

Draco tightened his lips and looked around before one thought rushed to the forefront of his mind.

"Fuck!"

"What?" Steven asked thrown back.

"Hermione!"

"I am sure she is okay. My brother is with her."

"She is pregnant Steve! She is most certainly not okay!"

Steven jaw dropped open at the news, but Draco just huffed in frustration as he turned away from the boy and looked for the way out. But before he could even take a step in the right direction, the earth began to shake again; and this time, it seemed relentlessly unforgiving.

 **03:04pm**

Hermione tightened her grasp on Jason as the ground shook with a powerful and violent force. There was nowhere to hide as the crowd began to scatter for somewhere safer to go. But the earth was merciless in is need to dominate and brought a good amount of people to their knees, including her and Jason.

But the location they were at was one that put them in grave danger. Hermione heard a loud groaning noise followed by the sound of something splitting in two. She looked up and saw the giant Lion statue, which sat in the middle of the entrance, start to tilt. A large crack formed at the base of the paw and quickly began to run up and along the length of the metal statue. She knew what was about to happen, so thinking quickly, she grabbed Jason's hand and pulled him away from the monument as fast as she could.

As they fell to the still shaking ground, the Lion statue began to break apart. Shattering in two, half the large golden feline came crashing to the concrete bricks with brutal strength. However the ruthless earth was not finished.

The ground began to split underneath the pair and Hermione quickly looked down in a shock and panic. She followed the large crack as it zigged zagged up the walkway and through the middle of the main gates. Before she knew it, Jason had wrapped his arms under her and lifted her up by her armpits, dragging her out of the way and breaking her from the small trance she was caught up in.

They stood there watching as a large fissure formed where the crack once was. The earth, now open, was screaming at them while it started to swallow the broken statue and innocent lives whole.

 **03:05pm**

Glass shattered everywhere as beams fell from the ceiling. Draco held on to Steven on the floor in front of a few habitats, while holding the teens head to his chest; trying his best to make sure the boy was going to be okay.

Thoughts of that night though, bombarded his mind as he watched himself hold on to Hermione. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't shake the vision away and even worse, she kept falling. The fear in her eyes, the terror in his, he couldn't escape it.

Everything around them came crashing to the floor, snapping him back to reality, but Draco didn't let go of the scared Slytherin in his arms. He had never felt something so powerful in his life. He didn't even know it was possible for the earth to move like it did and it scared him, more then he could ever possibly admit.

As he held on to Steven tighter, a beam fell from the rafters and swung into a glass barrier above them, causing it to explode and rain shards upon them. Draco ducked his head down more and covered both of them while the earth, in its relentless chaotic rage, continued to agitate the walls around them.

The roof began to groan as it trembled under the pressure of the earthquake, and Draco knew it was only a matter of time before it gave in. But as he tried to look around for a way out, the ground gave up and instantly stopped moving.

Breathing heavily into the boy's hair, Draco slightly looked around at the damage to the building. Glass was scattered all over the floor as ceiling lights sparked and dangled from the ceiling. It looked so much like his tower but he was determined not to go back to the day. He had a young boy to protect and he would be damned if he let anything happen to him while he was in his care.

Steven was crying into Draco's chest as he continued to look around for an exit. He knew they couldn't stay in the building any longer and he was desperate for a way out. Reptiles and amphibians, which were not crushed by the mayhem, began making their way out of their enclosures. Frogs hopped along, without a care in the world, as they too tried to find a way out.

Looking back down at Steven, still crying into him, Draco lowered his head and softly whispered to the boy.

"Steve, it's okay mate, I got you. We are okay…but we need to get out of here. Can you walk?"

Steven sniffled a little before nodding his head. Draco slowly released his tight hold on him and moved to help him stand. Once Steven was standing and wiping the tears from his now red face, Draco stood up and rested his hands on Steven's shoulders. He turned the young boy to him and lowered his upper body.

"Are you okay?" he asked gently. "Physically I mean."

Steven nodded his head, but looked like he was on the verge of tears again.

"I want my brother." He began softly sobbing.

Draco righted himself back up as he looked around the entrance.

"Okay, we will go get him. Come on let's-"

Draco stopped suddenly when he turned back to the teen to go the way they came, and stared down at the one thing he had hoped he would never encounter in person.

"What? What is it?" Steven questioned.

But Draco stayed perfectly still, trying his best not to show any sort of fear. Not just for Steven's sake though, but for the sake of the black and yellowed Cobra, arched up, right behind him.

 **03:08pm**

Hermione stared in shock at the large fissure separating her from getting into the Zoofari Party Area.

"We have to go!" Jason yelled out as he tried to pull Hermione in the opposite direction she was looking.

But Hermione wouldn't move. She had no idea now how she was supposed to get to her husband now. The fissure stretched about a mile long and was about fifteen feet wide; five feet wider than the average person can jump. But Hermione was adamant about getting Draco and she would stop at nothing to find him.

"What are you doing? Stop! You can't jump that!" Jason shouted in a plea as people ran passed them trying to get as far away from the zoo as possible.

Hermione shook Jason hold from her and began to set herself up to run and jump; though Jason was not having it. He grabbed her arm again and turned her to face him.

"HAVE YOU GONE COMPLETELY MENTAL?" he screamed as if he was disciplining a child. "YOU ARE PREGNANT! ARE YOU TRYING TO GET YOURSELF KILLED?"

"I need to get to Draco!" she yelled back in frustration while trying to once again break his hold on her.

"By committing suicide? You can't get to him if you are dead!" Hermione's eyes began to water as she looked around Jason's worried face. "My brother is in there too." He claimed lowering his voice. "There has to be a better way in than jumping over that crevice."

Hermione lowered her eyes for a moment, before looking back up and around the area.

"Um," she began, trying to hold back her tears "The um, the bus road…it uh, it wraps around the edge of the park, that way." She pointed behind him.

Jason turned his head to see where she was pointing before looking back to her and nodded his head.

"Right, okay, brilliant! Let's go!"

The duo quickly made their way over to the trail the bus's took, but immediately stopped when they saw how much damage was blocking their path. They continued a little further around the Zoo until they found a way in through the Elephant Odyssey location. Problem was, they only way in was through the habitat itself.

Climbing over the many barriers still standing, the duo began their trek through the savanna like enclosure, careful not to disturb any of the animals located inside.

"How are we supposed to get out of here?" Jason asked while looking up at the tall walls separating them from exiting."

"I could levitate us out." Hermione began and she stopped walking and looked up at the walls. "But I am sure we can find a way out somewhere. There are areas with railing we could possibly climb."

"Yeah, no offence or anything but I would rather you not use magic on me. Plus, can't you get in trouble for using magic in front of me?"

"Well technically yes, but this is a life or death situation. I am sure MACUSA would understand. Probably just wipe your memory anyway, if I don't do it first." She stated nonchalantly as she continued walking.

"I don't even want to know- wait you can wipe memories?"

Hermione nodded her head but kept her pace through the habitat.

"Before you say it." she held up a hand "It is not all it's cracked up to be. And it can mess with a person's mind; not in a good way. I obliviated my parents before the war and it was horrible." She stepped over a fallen tree before she continued "They didn't know I was their daughter for a long time after the war ended."

"That must have been hard." Jason replied sadly.

"It was…but not as hard as it would have been if they had been captured and killed because they were muggles with a hero for a daughter. I stand by my decision to take their memories, but it was the hardest thing I had to ever do."

"How did they end up remembering you?"

Hermione turned her head to look at Jason who was walking alongside her with his hands in his pockets.

"I found a way to finally reverse the spell. It wasn't easy and they still have small moments to this day of forgetting me."

"Damn, Hermione. I'm sorry."

She shrugged her shoulders and looked out to the open area. She stopped in her tracks when they came upon a herd of African Elephants huddled together in front of the badly damaged Care Center.

"They are beautiful up close." She sighed as she watched them surround the baby Elephants in protection.

"Yeah, they ar- hey where are you going?" Jason asked while Hermione hoped over a log to get a closer look.

"I just want a better view." She whispered as she looked back to Jason.

She expected to see him shaking his head in disappointment and laugh at her thoughts of getting closer to the enormous animals; what she wasn't expecting was the shocked and terrified look he was actually giving.

Hermione tilted her head in confusion as she watched his face go as white as Nearly Headless Nick.

"Hermione," he whispered "Hermione come back here, now!"

"Why? They won't hurt me if I show I am not threatening."

"They won't hurt you…but…but that will." He stated as he slowly raised a hand and pointed behind her.

She turned her head slowly and abruptly froze in place. Her eyes went wide as she stared straight into the eyes of one very pissed off looking Mountain Lion.


	9. Chapter 9- Danger

**AN- Thank you all for sticking by me with my lack of chapter posts! I really apologize for the delay, I had major writers block on this chapter and didn't know how to get everything that I wanted into this chapter. I also detoured and wrote a scene that won't happen for another 2 chapters or so lol. Anyway, due to my neglect, I have written and extra-long 6k+ chapter for you. I hope you enjoy it!**

Chapter 9- Danger

 **Wednesday, July 5th, 2006 03:11pm**

"Steven," Draco began as calm as he could while slowly reaching for his wand "I need to you to get behind me, alright?"

"Why? What is-"

"DON'T…ask questions. Just get behind me. And move slowly." He stated; his eyes never leaving the six foot long Cobra that had yet to notice them.

Steven's face fell to worry as he began to follow Draco's instructions. Unfortunately though, his fear got the better of him and he moved a little too quickly. The Cobra's head snapped to them just as Draco reached out and moved Steven faster behind him. He drew his wand and pointed it at the snake while he began to slowly back away.

The King Cobra spat out a large hiss in defense as it lightly struck at air ahead of it to prove its dominance. Draco took another step back as his free arm shielded the boy behind him. As he went to cast Stupefy, his wand sparked, but nothing happened. He tried again before remembering that he still wore the band, limiting his magic.

He went to try the Flipendo jinx and surprisingly it worked. He didn't complain however as the snake flipped in the air and landed with a hard thud a few feet away. Problem was, all Draco ended up doing, was pissing the Cobra off more.

The Cobra let off a loud and daring hiss as it righted its self and looked at the perpetrator. Draco readied his wand once more, but before he could cast the charm to knock the snake back again, something caught in the corner of his eye, making him stop just as fast as he was about to start.

A four foot long red and black Kingsnake, was slithering up to the side of the Cobra; it struck fast and hard before the Cobra even had a chance to react. The two snakes began to fight each other as their fangs pierced through the others scales, with neither one of them gaining the upper hand.

While the two reptiles fought and tangled themselves together, Draco took one more step back before realizing that Steven was no longer behind him. Turning around to see where he went, he saw the boy wide eyed and slowly backing up towards the cage with shattered glass they hid beneath earlier. He heard a faint rattling noise, but he had no idea where it was coming from. It wasn't until he caught a glimpse of the sign next to the enclosure, that Draco realized where the rattling was coming from.

"STEVEN, NO!" he shouted in a panic as he reached out a hand to grab to young Slytherin.

The shouting broke the trance Steven was in as he watched the two snake battle each other to certain death, but it startled him at the same time; making him jump in shock. Steven backed up against the opening giving the animal inside its chance to strike.

Steven let out a loud scream as the Rattlesnake inside the enclosure bit him in his right shoulder. Draco reached out for the boy and quickly turned him to see the five foot snake still holding on tightly to the teen with its fangs. Thinking as quickly as he could, Draco dropped his wand, grabbed behind the head of the reptile, and squeezed hard. He then grabbed the exposed tail and as fast as he could began bending it up and backwards, causing the Rattlesnake enough pain to release its grip and let go.

Steven stumbled forward while Draco held on to the snake before throwing it as far back into the cage as possible. Turning back around, he picked up his wand before scooping Steven into his arms and carried him to the exit.

Happy that the exit was still intact and not blocked, Draco kicked the door open and quickly carried the boy outside into the fresh air. Steven was crying in pain and Draco knew he had to find a way to get the venom out as fast as he could. He only knew one spell that Snape taught him long ago, for incase he was ever bit by Nagini; but the spell only removes some of the venom, giving the victim extra time to find an antidote.

There was little time to decide how to handle things and he had to act fast. Setting the boy on the ground, Draco raised his wand and cast the spell to pull some of the venom out of Steven's shoulder.

"We need to get you some help!" Draco began in a panic as he stood up and looked around for anyone who could assist him.

But the Zoo looked like a muggle bomb had gone off in it and became a complete ghost town. Not a soul was in sight and the exit was completely blocked off. The earth also split right through the gates, creating a huge mess that prevented them from leaving. He looked to the area they snuck in from earlier and saw the stadium they walked through, completely demolished. He was shocked the reptile house was still standing after seeing the destruction around him.

There was no way out and he had no idea how to help Steven anymore then he already did. Looking back down at the sobbing Slytherin, he suddenly had an idea.

"Dittany! We need to find you Dittany! It will remove the rest of the venom and heal your wound!" he ran his fingers through his hair and looked back around the obliterated zoo. "Where the fuck do I find an extremely rare plant?" he cursed aloud "Wait! Hermione might have some! She always has shite we never think we need! We have to find her!"

"How do you expect to find her in this place?" Steven asked through a whimper. "She could be anywhere right now."

"She was going to see the Lions and the Elephants with Jason. Maybe she is still in that area."

"It is unlikely. Besides, how do we even know…we have enough time…to find her before I die?" Steven questioned while slowly sitting up and wiping away the tears staining his face.

"YOU ARE NOT DYING!" Draco shouted as he turned around in anger.

Steven looked to be taken back at Draco's sudden anger and tilted his head in confusion.

Draco softened his features and turned back around to look at anything other than the boy who made him remember the last time he heard someone say they were dying.

"We need to find you Dittany." He calmly stated, trying to shake the memory of Hermione lying on the cold cement. "I will be damned if I let another person slip through my fingers."

"Okay, so let's go get it." Steven mentioned weakly.

"I have no idea where to find it! It is a rare plant."

"Great, this is how I die! Fifteen years old, bit by my bloody house mascot while trapped in a zoo that is falling apart on the edge of freaking North America, with an idol that has no idea where to fucking find Dittany! Which by the way, is called Origanum Dictamnus to muggles and only found wild on the mountainside and gorges of Crete, Greece; not be mistaken with Dictamnus Albus that is bitter and is toxic."

"How do you know that?" Draco asked, turning back around and raising a brow.

"Because I pay attention in potions class; also, I know how to read a brochure. It is protected by European law so it does not become extinct because it is so rare, but some muggle scientists have brought it over to America to study and help keep it from disappearing for good."

"Okay, but that doesn't tell us where to find any."

"Draco, come on. I know you are smart and I know you know that that plant grows in humid climates. Where in a zoo would you find a humid atmosphere?"

"The Rain Forest." He replied while trying to figure out how a teenager was out schooling him in the one subject he knew better than anyone.

"And how can this place keep humid temperatures at a constant state?"

"In an enclosed building but…" Draco paused for a moment as he began to put everything together. He felt pretty stupid for not thinking of it in the first place and a fifteen year old had to spell it out for him. In his defense, he was going through a lot and the only thing he was thinking about was finding his wife. "Bloody hell, the Aviary!" he shouted as he threw his hands in the air.

"We are so doomed." Steven whispered with a head shake. "It really took you that long to figure out?"

"You know, maybe if you would have just said where to find it in the first place, instead of giving me an origin lesson, we could have already been heading there." Draco retorted in aggravation. "Let's go, we don't have a lot of time!"

Draco quickly walked over to Steven and turned around so he could climb on to his back. Once he was settled, Draco made his way down Monkey Trail towards Scripps's Aviary.

On the way however, Draco could hear a faint whimper as the air began to fill with smoke. Steven coughed a few times as the smoke grew thicker and thicker and the whimper began to grow louder. Draco stopped walking as his whole body tensed up and flashes of the fight with Ron in the Parking Garage, began to bombard his mind.

"Draco? What is wrong?" Steven questioned as he looked around in his weaken state.

But Draco couldn't answer him. He just stood there frozen in place as the whimper echoed through his ears.

"Draco! Draco there is something crying in a fire over there!" Steven pointed to the right while also trying to shake Draco out of his daze. "Draco…MALFOY!" He screamed in his ear, finally snapping Draco back to reality.

"What?" Draco asked after shaking his head.

"Something is trapped over there!" He claimed while he once again pointed to the area where the fire was building.

"You can hear it too?" he asked calmly, still believing that his head was playing tricks on him again.

"What do you mean 'can I hear it too'? Of course I can hear it. We have to go help whatever it is! It could be a person!"

"We can't just go walking into a fire, Steve. Last time I did, two people died."

"But at least you helped! If you won't go then I will!" Steven claimed as he began to try and wiggle himself out of Draco's grasp.

"Okay, okay! I'll go! You stay here." Draco announced as he set the boy down.

"I'm not staying here. I can help."

"You are injured and have venom running through your veins! I am not risking you getting hurt by that fire!"

"YOU ARE NOT MY FATHER!" Steven shouted in anger, stunning Draco for a brief moment. "You can't tell me what to do!"

"You're right. You're lucky I'm not because if I was, your life would turn out to be just as miserable mine!"

Steven raised a brow as he looked at Draco in confusion. Draco let out a deep sigh and looked back at the fire billowing out of a habitat.

"Whatever!" Steven threw his hands in the air in frustration and pushed passed Draco to get to the enclosure.

Draco ran after the boy and grabbed his uninjured shoulder. Whipping him around, he stared into the teens eyes with determination and anger.

"Let's get something straight, Steve! I may not be your father, but at this moment I am your guardian; your life is in my hands, and until we get you back to Jason, you are my responsibility!" His eyes went dark as he lowered his voice and glared at the boy. "Trust me, I can be far scarier than your muggle father; I am an ex Death Eater who has seen more evil in the world than your brain can even comprehend. I have done more evil than that bloody tell-all book said, and when I tell you to do something, I expect you to listen. Do I make myself clear?"

"But-"

"NO! No but's, you stay out here, do you understand me?" Draco yelled in aggravation; reminding him so much of his own father. "You do not leave this fucking area unless your life is hanging in the balance! I expect you to be here when I get back, and then we are going to find you Dittany, and then my wife! I don't care if I have to find a way to stun you, you are staying put!"

Steven nodded his head in understanding as his face fell to mixture of shock and sadness, while Draco once again looked up at the fire, trying to calm himself down. Taking in a deep breath, he started towards the employee entrance and brought out his wand. Smoke began to file out of the door as soon it was opened, causing him to cough and wave his hand in front of his face.

Steven stared on in disappointment but lowered his head and backed up to rest on a bench a few feet away that wasn't destroyed.

Draco looked at the boy for a minute as he tried to find a way to trust that Steven would stay put. Realizing there was not a lot of time, he finally turned around and walked through the door. He lifted his shirt to cover his mouth and nose and began to crawl under the black smoke. He made his way further into the employee area, but as he crawled, Draco's hand touched something soft. He couldn't see two feet in front of him and he prayed to Salazar, he wasn't touching something that would bite him. Hesitantly, he moved his hand up the soft object before realizing the object, was a person. He reached his fingers up to the neck of the person to check for a pulse and when he didn't feel one, he lowered his head in defeat.

But the smoke was getting thicker and he knew he couldn't stay where he was. Knowing the person in front of him was a lost cause, he crawled over them and made his way to the door that separated him from inside of the enclosure. He stood up and looked through the large window next to the door to try and see if he could find what was crying.

However, he was not prepared for the sight he saw. The fire was larger than what he could see from the outside and it engulfed the trees inside with a burning ember. Moving his gaze down to the floor of the exhibit, Draco caught a glimpse of something small and scared. He realized then what habitat he was standing in front of.

A baby Bonobo sat crying next to a fallen tree and without thinking, Draco reached for the door knob; but the metal was severely hot to the touch and it made him pull his hand back in pain. He looked down and saw a key pad and realized he couldn't open the door the normal way if he wanted to. He also noted that the unlocking charm wasn't made for muggle keypads and blasting the thing open was out of the question since the band would most likely consider it terrorist activity.

So in desperation, he began to try and ram the door open with his shoulder, but in his rash decision making, he forgot to not use his right arm. He slammed hard into the steel plate as he tried to bust it down, and as soon as his arm made contact, he knew it was a mistake.

His shoulder seared in pain as it dislocated once again. He never thought he would know the true pain behind the injury because the last time he felt it, he was distracted by Hermione. Now that he was sort of clear headed, the pain felt immensely stronger.

He stumbled backwards as he held on to his arm and gritted his teeth. There was no time to try and fix it and he owed it to Steven to save the poor animal trapped inside the fire.

Still holding his injury while riding through the pain, Draco turned back to the door and began to kick at it. It wasn't until the third try, that the steel plate gave way and swung open. More smoke began to fill the room as Draco held up his left arm to shield his face from the intense heat.

It was then that he remembered the bubble-head charm. He tried it quickly and thanked Merlin the band on his wrist didn't stop it from working. Sucking in a large breath, finally able to breathe, he made his way inside and looked around for the baby. He looked to the right as saw the Bonobo in state of panic as its head looked around the room. Its cries filled Draco's ears and it broke his heart to see the baby in such fear. Looking down at the tree, he realizes the fire was not the only reason the primate was crying. Both parents of the baby laid beneath the branches of the fallen tree, and unfortunately they weren't moving.

Rushing to the animal, Draco saw that the tree was not only pinning its parents down, but it was holding down the baby's leg as well. The baby Bonobo screeched in fear when he got closer to it, but he was determined to save the thing before they both suffer the consequences of fire.

Harnessing in inner Hermione, he dropped to his knees slowly and tilted his head.

"Hey there…little one," He began, clearing his throat as softly as he could while holding out his left hand to show he was not a threat. "It's okay…I…I want to help."

The baby looked at Draco in a perplexed state as it continued to cry the most heart wrenching cry he had ever heard. Inching closer, while moving his left hand back to support his dislocated arm, Draco continued to try and sooth the primate in the raging fire surrounding them.

"I'm not going to hurt you, I promise. I just want to help, okay?" he stated, hoping the thing could understand him, but knowing it was only going to react to the calmness he emitted, not his words. "I am going to lift the tree now, okay? He claimed as he reached out and tried to show the baby what he was going to do.

The baby Bonobo calmed slightly and Draco took it as a clear sign to continue. Without hesitation, he moved closer to the fallen tree and maneuvered his hand around its branches; all without taking his eyes off the baby as the fire scorched the area next to them.

Fixing him-self to be able to get a good hold with one hand, Draco began to lift the tree with everything he had. He let out a loud groan as he heaved the tree up and off all three primates. Tossing it to the side with a heavy breath, he looked back to the baby that moved to cry and lay at its mother's side.

The sight was unbearable and it made Draco tear up at the grief radiating the room. He knew the pain the baby felt all too well. He had not only lost Hermione once, but unbeknownst to her, he cried for days after his mother was sent to Azkaban. He lost so much last year, that the feeling the Bonobo was releasing, created a sorrow in him he wished to never feel again.

Doing his best to snap out of memory lane, Draco quickly moved to the primate's side and gently rested his hand on its back. It was smaller than he thought it would be and he felt his protective indicts start to kick in. He wanted to comfort the hairy animal and comfort it, he did.

Not really knowing what else to do, he turned the baby into his arm and cradled it for a moment as it cried into him. Once again, the action brought back the memory of his first time hugging Hermione as she sobbed into his neck back in his tower. However this time, the experience was more parental than affectionate.

Scooping the baby up into his good arm, he carried it from the fiery grave and out of the enclosure. Stepping out into the fresh air, he looked around for Steven and took notice that he was not on the bench he originally left him at. Panicking he looked around for the boy with the baby still in his arms, as he began to scour the area in hopes of finding him.

His eyes landed on the young Slytherin standing at a railing off to his right in front of the Gorilla enclosure, with his head hanging low. Letting out a sigh of relief, Draco made his way over to him.

"Why are you over here?" he asked with firmness, yet he kept his voice calm at the same time.

"I couldn't bear to look at that scene anymore." Steven replied with a weak crushed voice. "That fire got so big and I panicked and…" Steven stepped back from the bar and looked up at Draco with weary expression.

"What's wrong? What is it?"

Before Steven had a chance to answer, a huge explosion burst from the sanctuary, causing both boys to drop to their knees and cover their heads. Debris rained down on them in the form of leaves, metal, and wood; only missing them by inches. Once the fire retracted, Draco slowly looked up with his mouth hanging slightly open. He didn't really understand what could have caused the habitat to explode, but what he did know, was that he was extremely lucky to have made it out before it happened with him inside.

The exhibit was no longer standing. Its walls were crumbling to the ground as the fire and smoke rose higher into the air. Draco was in disbelief at the sight before him. He literally just walked out of the building only a minute ago.

"Draco," his head snapped back to Steven who was holding his stomach and looked like he was about to throw up. "I…I don't feel so good."

Before Draco had time to react, Steven's eyes rolled back into his head and he collapsed to the ground in a faint. Cursing himself, Draco set the baby Bonobo down and crouched next to the teen. He placed his good hand on his forehead and felt a hot fever brewing beneath his soot covered skin. An unnerving presence engulfed the Slytherin Prince as he tried to figure out how to now carry Steven the rest of the way to Aviary.

Taking out his wand, he first removed the bubble-head charm from his face and then cast the levitating charm; thanking Merlin and Salazar, that the band let him preform the spell. Lifting the boy up he began to walk at a fast pace toward the giant Bird Cage; but not before realizing that the baby Bonobo clung to his left leg in desperation.

Rolling his eyes, Draco ignored the animal on his leg and continued on his way. The Aviary wasn't in ruins like he thought it would be when he arrived in front of it a few minutes later. He expected it to be in shambles, but it was perfectly fine standing tall with only a few cracks radiating up the employee building. Other than the cracks, it looked to have been untouched.

Be that as it may, he wasn't taking any chances and cautiously walked up to the employee door. The baby had climbed up his uninjured arm during the race to the Aviary and sat on his shoulder in a tremble. Still ignoring the thing that wouldn't leave his side, he lowered Steven to the ground before turning back to face the door. Whispering the unlocking charm, the door opened and Draco once again levitated Steven behind him.

The smell of the faux rain forest filled Draco's nostrils with warmth while the humid temperature enveloped around him.

He looked around the room for a place to lay the teen. After shifting some debris away with his foot, he set the boy down on the floor. Double checking to make sure he was still breathing and alive, he stood back up and went to remove the Bonobo from arm.

But the baby grabbed a hold of his hair and refused to get off him.

"Get off me you little ankle biter!" he yelled, but the primate only held on tighter. "You insufferable little shite; ugh fine, but at least let go of my hair!"

To his surprise the baby loosened its grip on his hair and instead wrapped its arms around his neck. Rolling his eyes Draco moved to the door and realized there was another key pad that required entry. Turning around he scanned the room for something to help him break the door open, when his eyes landed on desk sitting in the corner.

He made his way over to start checking drawers when he saw a flash of something shine in the corner of his eye. Glancing over, Draco saw a small card sitting on the surface of the desk. He picked it up by the lanyard and read the words written on the front.

"Senior Employee Accesses Card…Well that was easy."

Turning back around he made his way over to the door and scanned the card to get in. Walking in, the humidity hit him hard in the face, but he knew he couldn't be bothered by it. He grabbed a hold of his injured right arm to support it and began running through the Aviary looking for the rare plant he so desperately needed. The birds sang and chirped as he ran; creating a very tropical environment and making him feel more and more like he was actually in a rain forest. But Draco didn't have time to admire the beauty with in the Aviary; he needed Dittany and he needed it now.

As he continued to run down the metal pathway, he quickly stopped and back tracked slightly when he saw the plant resting near some birds. He recognized the birds to be Metallic Starlings and thought them to be relatively friendly.

Ignoring the signs that said to not lean over the railing, Draco hopped the rail and landed on his feet about six feet below the platform. Readjusting himself and making sure the baby was okay, he rushed to the plant; however he stopped abruptly when a swarm of Starlings flew in front of him.

The small black birds surrounded the Dittany like they were protecting it and there had to be at least a flock of thirty or more, chatting away in front of him.

"Scram!" he shouted as he waved his left hand at them; still holding on to his wand. But the birds didn't move, nor did they seem fazed by his shouting.

Draco looked around them for the plant he needed and realized why the birds were acting out of the ordinary. He assumed some of the nests during the quake fell from the tree tops and landed on the forest floor. The birds were simply protecting what eggs they had left.

Throwing his head back in frustration, Draco tried to think of something, anything, he could do to get the birds to move for just a moment and let him pass, but in the rush of everything, there was only one thing he could think of.

Raising his arm back out in front of him, Draco spoke the levitation charm and lifted the nests in the air. The birds went into a crazed state; flapping their wings and squawking at him, but he ignored the cries for him to put the eggs down and continued to lift their babies. He set them gently off to the side, away from where he needed to go and watched as the Starlings flew over to the nest to make sure they were okay.

He repeated the process on a few more eggs before his path was clear and he could safely get to the Dittany. One Starling however, was not happy with him and stood its ground in front of him. It squawked angrily at him and hopped around like it wanted to attack.

Before he could raise his wand again and move the bird, the baby Bonobo leapt off his shoulder and began screaming in a high pitched yelp at the small feathered friend. To say Draco was shocked was an understatement. The primate continued to create a noise that terrified even him as it swung its arms in the air like a crazed lunatic. The bird realized then that it was out matched and quickly flew away to join the others. The baby calmed down before looking back to Draco with a proud expression. It began to pick at its ear before it turned back around and ran towards the Dittany.

Raising a brow, Draco shook his head and began to follow. Once he got in front of the rare endangered plant he crouched down and admired the beauty of the pinkish flower. He studied it for a moment, trying to find the best way to extract what he needed without damaging the rest of the stem.

Once he figured it out, he ripped at the flower where he knew it would not harm it and quickly put the leaves into his pocket. He turned around and started back to the platform; the baby Bonobo racing behind him as he ran as fast as he could back to Steven.

The boy laid pale and white as a ghost on the floor, his breathing was heavy, and sweat began to form in ringlets across his forehead. Not wanting to waste any more time, Draco kneeled at the boy's side and brought out the Dittany. There was no time to extract its essence and the only sure fire way he knew to get the plant to work without a potion was to have Steven eat the thing.

But the boy was unconscious and in no shape to ingest anything. He had to wake him up.

Draco set the plant down and began to lightly tap at the teen's cheek, but it didn't do any good.

"Steven!" he began "Steven I need you to wake up, fight the venom and wake up!"

Still nothing, so Draco did the only thing he knew might work and for some reason, he didn't think to try early. He brought out his wand again and pointed it at the small Slytherin.

"Aguamenti!"

A jet of clear clean water burst from the tip of his wand and splashed directly into Steven's face. The boy jerked awake in his weakened state and tried to lift a hand to block the stream of water hitting him. Draco quickly ended the spell and set his wand down. He picked the Dittany back up and began to shove it into Steven mouth before he could pass out again.

Steven fought at the action, not really knowing what was going on, but Draco held his ground and forced the plant further in his mouth. He then pushed the boys jaw shut and yelled at him to chew. Steven's face contorted at the taste, but he followed direction and started chewing.

He swallowed hard before taking in a deep breath and passed back out again. Knowing he should be okay for now and he needed time for the flower to do its work, Draco then focused on how he was going to pop his shoulder back into place. The longer it was out of place, the worse the healing was going to be. He kicked at some debris before lying down and put his arms out to the side of him.

Closing his eyes, Draco recalled every raspy faint breath Hermione took as she tried to explain how to fix his arm the first time in his tower. Taking in a deep breath, he clenched his eyes and prepared for the pain of lifting his arm in the air. He did the same thing he did before and he reached for the back of his left shoulder. He then released a large agonizing cry when he felt his right shoulder pop back into place.

With his eyes still closed, he held on to his forearm until the pain began to subside. He felt a very small hand begin to pet his forehead and his eyes shot open in a panic. He looked up and saw the baby Bonobo weeping slightly as it pet him; almost as if it was trying to comfort him. He let off a small laugh and faintly smiled up at the small creature. He didn't much like the thing, but he thought it was sort of cute and it seemed to be growing on him.

Draco laid there for another fifteen minutes or so as he gathered his strength to begin moving again. He heard a soft moan next to him and he quickly turned his head to the left. Steven was waking up and he already looked ten times better. His skin color was coming back to normal and his breathing was no longer labored. Draco smiled when the boy turned his head groggily to look at him.

"What…" Steven swallowed "What happened? Why am I wet?"

Draco let out a light chuckle as he turned his head to look back up at the ceiling.

"Let's just say…It has been a hell of a day." He turned his head back to Steven "Are you okay? Can you walk?"

Steven sat up and looked around before nodding his head. Draco looked back to the ceiling before he too sat up with a large groan. He then stood up and made his way over to help the teen stand as well. They began to make their way out of the Aviary and down the long broken path to the lion enclosure. Luckily for them, they didn't run into any more problems. The trek was not easy though and they found many dead bodies scattered all over. He wished Steven didn't have to see them, but there was nothing he could do to stop it from happening.

He ushered him along the best he could and they both took turns holding the baby Bonobo on their shoulders. The baby at first seemed weary and hesitant to go to Steven, but eventually it warmed up to him and allowed the boy to hold it; cheering the Slytherin teen up tremendously.

The duo stopped when they got back to the Norther Frontier area, but instead of going inside they continued along the path, passing the Mountain Lion den.

"Where is the lion?" Steven asked as he walked up to the glass.

"What? What do you mean?" Draco asked, stopping in his tracks.

"The Mountain Lion…it's not there. And the habitat looks intact."

"Maybe it's hiding or lying behind a rock and you can't see it." Draco suggested as he turned to look through the viewing glass.

"No Draco, it's not there."

Draco's heart dropped, but he was determined to think of any possible reason as to why a perfectly intact exhibit didn't harbor the animal it was supposed to.

"Maybe it's in the back or not on display because it's not in this zoo yet?"

"Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?"

"Both." He stated with a shaky voice.

The boys both stared at the glass for a few more minutes before pressing onward towards the Elephant enclosure.

"Thank you by the way." Steven announced while the duo continued to walk.

"For what?"

"For saving my life. I owe you big time."

"You don't owe me anything."

"A life for a life, I owe you; whether either of us like it or not."

The two Slytherin continued on their path, but had to find another way into the exhibit. The original path was blocked by large debris and they both knew it would take too long to clear. So they made their way through Panda Canyon and back to Park Way.

"Hey Steven?" Draco questioned as he stopped walking and waited for the boy to turn around.

"Yeah?"

"I…I'm sorry for yelling at you back at the Monkey exhibit."

"No worries. I am sure I would have just slowed everything down anyway." he replied with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Still, I shouldn't have yelled."

"Draco?" Steven took a step forward and removed his hands from his pockets. "I know you were scared. You had every right to be. I'm not mad, I sort have deserved it." He paused for a moment to kick at a rock sitting in front of him. "You know, you have cared more for me today than anyone but Jason has in my life. You even saved and accepted the fur ball on your shoulder. My…my parents are still a little scared of me and don't treat me like they used to, even though I have never given them a reason to fear me…I am still their son…You and Jason are all I have right now and if we never see each other again after this, I want you to know how grateful I am for you not only saving me today, but treating me like a normal person."

"I didn't really do much."

"Pshh, really?" he asked with an eye roll "Draco, I know you were just as scared as I was, if not more; you did everything you could to save my life. And not that my opinion really matters, but…I think you will make a really good father."

Draco relaxed his shoulders and lightly smirked at the fifteen year old in front of him. It was then that he realized he needed to hear the words come from someone else's mouth. It wasn't that he didn't believe Hermione when she told him, or even when he tried to tell himself that he could possibly be better than his own father. It was the fact that a teenage boy, who barely knew him, was telling him he was a good guy; someone worthy of being a parent.

Steven shocked him even more when he took a few more steps forward and closed the gap between them. He looked up at Draco with a small smile before wrapping his arms around him and hugged him.

Draco stood there for a brief moment in a state of disbelief, before he lifted his left hand and placed it on the boys back. He then gently moved his hand further across his shoulders and tightened the hug. A large smile began to form on his lips as he held on to the teen. He had never hugged anyone but Hermione and his mother in his life. He didn't think he could feel anymore happy than he did in that moment. And he had the new Slytherin Prince to thank for it.

"Thank you." He whispered into the boy's hair.

Steven released his hold on him and took a step back with a large smile.

"Come on, let's go find our family."

The boys continued off down the trail and turned left at the cross road. However, Draco's heart stopped when a dead grizzly bear lay in the path before them. He reached up an arm to stop Steven, since he was not even paying attention and watched in horror as his eyes rose. His gaze landed on Hermione about one hundred feet in front on him, covered in blood, and face to face with a very large, very angry looking Lion.

Thinking as fast as he could in his terrified state, he grabbed Steven's arm and drug him into some bushes.

"Stay here!" he whispered with all seriousness before removing the Bonobo from his shoulder and handed it to Steven.

He rushed back to the path and watched in horror as Hermione reached out a hand to touch the giant feline.

"HERMIONE NO!" He screamed out to her, but she either didn't hear him, or she wasn't listening.


	10. Chapter 10-Loss

**AN- So I am going to try something different this time. I had someone mention to me once that putting the song title and artist in the middle of the story can sometimes throw off the vibe created. So what I am going to try, is telling you the name and artist in the beginning in an Author's Note, and add -** _ **XX **__**where the song will begin. It is still optional if you want to listen to it. You can listen to it before the scene, after the scene, during the scene, or not at all. Completely up to you. I only pick songs I think will add to the intensity of the scene and what song I think would not only work best, but what I picture is playing in my head when I create the drama. Anyway, let me know what you think and if there is another way to place the song that won't interrupt anything. I also took a while on this chapter because I wanted to get it right and make sure it was good enough before continuing. I hope you enjoy!**_

Song- **Get It Right- by Glee Cast** (if you look on YouTube for the actual video, it is in Spanish, but the singing is in English

 **Side note: All animal behavior and sounds made in this story are researched and accurate.**

 **Credit to Scorpia11 for the edits!**

Chapter 10-Loss

 **Wednesday, July 5th, 2006 03:11pm**

Hermione stared in fear at the Mountain Lion standing before her. Of all the crazy magical creatures she has ever faced, for some reason the Cougar seemed more terrifying. She would take Fluffy, the three-headed dog, over of this wild beast any day; at least with Fluffy she knew what she was up against. She barely knew anything about Mountain Lions; just that they were known by many different names.

"Hermione, slowly come over here." Jason whispered as he hid behind a large fallen tree.

But Hermione just stood there in shock. If she ran to Jason, she knew the feline's instinct would be to chase her. She had no idea what to do.

"Hermione!" he called out in a louder whisper.

She held up a hand to shush him as she slowly took a step back. The Mountain Lion arched down and let out a loud terrifying screech causing Hermione to shudder at the sound. It reminded her so much of when Ron accidently stepped on Crookshanks tail once in sixth year.

"Bring out your…thing- your wand!" Jason whispered out again to her.

Hermione slowly reached for her wand, her eyes never leaving the big round yellow ones before her. She had to show she wasn't afraid, even though her heart basically dropped into her stomach. She remembered reading once about trying to appear larger, but she was small and no matter what she did, the Mountain Lion would see her as inferior.

She took another cautious step back, hoping the mammal wouldn't pounce. They were dangerous, yes, but also known to try and avoid humans unless threatened. Hermione wondered if the earthquake had annoyed it enough to want to hurt her.

The Cougar began to pace back and forth like it was trying to decide if it was worth attacking or not. Hermione glanced up when she saw something large appear in her peripheral view and noticed the Parade of Elephants making their way over to them. They were slow walking but determined looking.

The Mountain Lion didn't seem to notice as its attention was on focused on Hermione, but once one of the Elephants lifted its trunk and let out a roar, the mammal turned quickly in surprise. It was strange to hear as she had never heard an Elephant roar before, but as she tried to think about the occurrence, another Elephant mimicked the first.

The rest of the parade of large creatures chimed in as they walked forward towards the large Puma. The feline coward backwards as it realized it was outmatched before looking at Hermione once more and running off.

Hermione let out the breath she didn't know she was holding while still staring at the area the fierce cat once stood. Jason stood up from his hiding spot while looking from the empty area, to the elephants, to finally Hermione.

"Are…Are-are you okay?" He asked stepping out from behind the fallen tree.

Hermione continued to stare ahead of her with her wand still stretched out. Jason walked up to her and laid a hand on her shoulder. She turned her head slowly with tears staining her face. She quickly wiped them away and then pocketed her wand in her bag.

"Are you okay?" he asked again. She looked back up to him at a loss for words. "Why didn't you hex the thing?"

"I…I couldn't think of a spell that the band would let me use. My-my mind just went blank." Her face turned sour "I am the smartest witch out here and I couldn't think of one stupid spell to use!"

"Hermione you were scared; it's understandable to forget temporarily."

"I don't forget things!" she spat.

Jason took a step back and held his hands up in defense.

"Sorry, I was just trying to help."

Hermione softened her features and relaxed her shoulders.

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to snap at you. It's just…I fought in a war, I have gone up against the most dangerous magical creatures out there; one would think a Mountain Lion would be easy to handle."

"Yeah well…I didn't know elephants roaring was thing either." He laughed lightly "But I will say, I bet none of those times you went up against those beasts, your magic was limited. It's normal human behavior to forget in times of fear."

Hermione let out a sigh, turned around, and came face to face with a male African Elephant. It shocked her slightly and she took a step back while letting out a loud gasp. She lowered her hand from her chest and looked up at the giant mammoth like animal. The elephant raised its trunk and placed it on her shoulder. It began to tickle her ear as it sniffed her, causing her to giggle in joy.

Hermione raised her hands and gently touched the side of the trunk. It felt like a muggle eraser to her; soft, yet tough at the same.

Another elephant walked up to Jason and copied, what Hermione assumed was the Elder, was doing. Except it didn't just sniff at Jason like the one did to her; instead it wrapped its trunk around his waist and began hoisting him into the air.

The duo let out laughs of pure joy at the actions happening around them. It was the first time all day that she had been able to feel happy about something. She temporarily forgot about all the bad that had occurred the last two days. She forgot about the danger she was previously in, the fight with Draco, the earthquakes, everything. For the first time all day, Hermione smiled a genuine smile.

The Elder in front of her lowered its trunk to her stomach and let out a light grumble while flapping its ears vigorously. The rest of the Parade began to circle around the duo, almost in protection, mimicking each other. The experience was strange, but it had a calming effect as well.

Before she knew it however, the Parade stopped what they were doing and began to walk away. The Elder in front of her lightly tapped her on the head with its trunk making Hermione giggle one last time. She lifted her hands back up, took ahold of the large column that extended from the animals face, and leaned her cheek against it.

"Thank you." she smiled softly.

The Elder Elephant blew air from its nose into her face before bowing slightly and turned away.

"Well…that was an _odd_ encounter to say the least." Jason interrupted her thoughts as he walked up to her with his hands in his pockets.

Hermione just smiled as she watched the family of giant mammals walk off into the distance.

"Yeah," She finally stated after a few seconds of silence "but one I wouldn't change for the world."

Jason let out a small puff of air through his noise as he smirked, before guiding Hermione back down the path they originally were taking.

"Do you think they knew I was with child?" Hermione asked once they walked for a few minutes looking for a way out.

Jason shrugged his shoulders while looking up at the pathway they couldn't reach.

"I mean, it's possible. Animals have a sense for things humans will forever wish they could possess. Wouldn't surprise me if they did know; Elephants are extremely smart creatures with a very brilliant memory. That's one of the reason they are my favorite."

"Jason…Do you think we will find Draco and Steven? I-I am so worried about them."

Jason stopped walking and turned to face her. He rested his hands on her shoulders and stared her directly in the eyes.

"We will find them, Hermione. You are the smartest witch of her age, or so I am told, and Draco is a very intelligent man. There is no doubt in my mind that we won't find them. In fact, they might even find us first." He beamed.

Hermione lifted the corner of her mouth in a half smile and looked down at the ground.

"Thank you for helping me today." She raised her eyes back up to him "You didn't have to come…but I really appreciate that you did. It means a lot to me."

"Hermione...Stop thanking me." He smirked with a head shake "You and Draco are my friends. I would…will, do anything for my friends."

"Ditto." She smirked back.

Jason laughed and they turned to keep walking. They suddenly stopped when an explosion rang through the air to the left of them. They both saw a cloud of dark black smoke rise into the sky and it made Hermione worry more. She wondered if Draco was near the explosion or if Steven was; if they boys were even still together and made it out of the reptile house alive.

In a rush to gain some answers, Hermione burst into a run with Jason hot on her tail. They weaved around fallen trees, cracks in the Earth surface, and animals that did not make it, before they turned left and tried making their way through Asian Passage, which connected to the enclosure they were trapped in.

Hermione stopped running when she reached a fence a few feet away, separating them from the rest of the Zoo. She quickly turned around to see how far Jason was behind her when her heart stopped and her mouth fell open.

The Mountain Lion from earlier apparently was not too happy to be scared off by a bunch of herbivores and stood angrily on its four massive paws in front of her. It clawed at the air in rage, attempting to scare her further as it showed its large sharp teeth designed to tear through meat and tendons.

Reaching for her wand as fast as she could, she held it straight out in front of her with a shaking hand. The Cougar let out a loud terrifying screech before readying itself to pounce. It clearly saw Hermione as a weak and smaller target, but even though it wanted maim her, she couldn't bring herself to want to kill the animal.

She tried to quickly think of every spell she knew that the band on her wrist would let her use, but before she could go further into her mind, she felt something push her hard to the side. At first she thought the feline got her, but she never felt the razor-sharp claws or the pointed edge fangs sink into her skin.

Looking up from the ground where she had fallen, Hermione witness the most horrifying thing since the war.

Jason fell to the ground on his back with the Mountain Lion pinning him down. Its salient teeth digging into his neck while its claws gripped to his shoulders; preventing him from fully being able to fight back. But fighting back is what he tried his hardest to do.

Pushing back on the short-haired cat's chest, Jason let out a loud howl of pain as it released its hold for a few second before chomping back down at his neck again.

Hermione sat frozen on the earth's hard surface, watching in panic and terror as the Puma ripped the muggle in front of her to shreds.

Shaking away the fear and consternation, Hermione scrambled to her feet and pointed her wand once more. As she cried tears of sorrow through Jason's horrifying screams, only one spell came to mind that she knew would work; one that no Ministry knew about.

"Sectumsempra!" she cried out and a flood of white light shot from the tip of her wand.

The dark curse hit the oversized feline in the ribs, causing it to soar backwards off Jason and crash to the ground with multiple large red lacerations covering its body.

Jason shook violently as his blood began to seep from his body and stain the grass and dirt below him.

"JASON!"

Hermione ignored the dying Mountain Lion laying only a few feet from them and ran to the man who officially saved her life this time.

Sliding to her knees next to him, Hermione took in the extensive damage done to Jason's flesh. Though most of his upper body was lacerated with deep bleeding wounds, his inability to breathe was her most pressing concern. Dropping her wand, she swiftly covered the deep gash on the side of his neck with her hands. Rich crimson blood coated her arms and stained her sundress as it seeped from under her palms. The wound was severe; she knew without a doubt the bite had hit an artery.

"Jason, stay with me! Please stay with me!" she begged as tears burned her eyes and trickled down her face.

Jason looked up at her with panicked eyes as she tried to think of a spell to save him. She looked around and spotted her wand on the ground next to her. Releasing a hand from his neck, she grabbed the thin Vinewood and pointed it at his wound.

Jason lifted a hand and grabbed ahold of her wrist.

"Don't" he stated while trying to breathe through the blood in his mouth.

His body jerked as the pain continued to radiate through him, but he held on to her wrist with all the remaining strength he had left.

"I need to heal your wounds or" she paused and bit back a sob "or you're g-going to d-die!" she exclaimed, confused as to why he would stop her.

"L-lost…t-t-too m-much…blood" he gasped between fast painful breaths. "Pointless…"

"I can save you." she cried sorrowfully. "Please let me save you."

"Y-you know…it's…t-too…l-late."

"No! I can fix this! This is my entire fault! If I had just hexed the thing earlier, this wouldn't have happened!"

"H-her…m-mione…it's o-okay…Not…y-your f-fault."

Hermione wept harder while Jason's skin began to pale. She had to save him, if she could just close his wounds she could save him.

"T-tell…Ste-ve…I…lo..love…hi…him…p-promise…p-promise m-me-you'll…t-tell him."

Hermione knew deep down that Jason was right, even if she could close his wounds, he already lost too much blood. She sobered as she realized there weren't any blood replenishing potions in her beaded bag nor any transfusion kits. He would die here in her arms and there was no way she could stop it…no way she could save him.

"I-I…I promise. I'll tell him."

The corner of his lips lifted into a small smile as tears steamed from the corner of his eyes. His body convulsed as obvious pain radiated though him.

"C-can you…p-p-pain?" he asked cracking his eyes open one last time. His body was failing him and the pain simply unbearable…praying she could help take some of it away.

 _ **XX**_

Hermione nodded her head and did her best to hold back her tears as he released his grip from her wrist. She hastily reached into her bag and summoned a small white stone. Placing it next to him, she pointed her wand and muttered the incantation to activate the Forget Me Now.

A faint white mist began to envelop them, easing Jason into a deep sleep. Once he was fully under, she brought the tip of her wand to his temple, thought of a happy memory, and gently cast a modified false memory charm to ease his pain.

In Jason's mind, he awoke beneath a large Oak tree in a beautiful golden wheat field illuminated by soft sunlight. He laid still on the ground beneath the wide spread branches, whole and healthy without any signs of the blood or injury from the Cougar attack. Hermione stood nervously off to the side as he blinked open his eyes.

"Where am I?" Jason asked standing up "Am I…Is this Heaven?"

Hermione bit her bottom lip as she stood next to him, trying to hold back the sadness tearing at her heart.

"If you want it to be" She replied softly.

"It's beautiful here." He expressed while looking around.

"Jason!" she heard a boy call out. "Jason!"

They looked off into the distance as a young teen ran towards them. Though he started near the other side of the endless field, he quickly began closing the space between them; but at the same time…he looked to never reach his destination.

"Steve?" Jason asked while squinting his eyes to see better.

Hermione was perplexed at Steven's presence in the dream. She hadn't conjured him; he wasn't supposed to be there. The only way he could be present, was if he were unconscious or dying.

Steven ran as hard as he could until he reached them and threw himself into his brother's arms. Jason lifted his little brother into the air and spun around in a circle before quickly setting him down and hugged him tightly for the last time.

"I missed you, you little bugger!" Jason claimed as he released the boy and tousled his hair.

"Hey! Don't mess up my hair!"

Hermione stood by and watched the scene before her in awe. She was careful not to think of Draco and potentially ruin the dream she created.

The brothers laughed while they poked fun at each other and Hermione thought it was best for her to leave the two of them to say their goodbyes. Turning on her heel she began to walk away, but was suddenly stopped by Jason's voice.

"Hey!" he called out to her "Wait up!"

He jogged away from Steven's side to hers. Hermione quickly wiped away a tear and turned back to face the man she couldn't save.

"Why are you crying?" he questioned as his smile faded and transformed to concern.

She waved him off and produced a fake smile to return to him.

"I'm just happy you found Steve." she half lied.

In truth, she was very happy the boys had found each other, but she was terrified that Steven was also dying as well, and possibly even Draco.

"Thanks to you!" Jason beamed as the wind billowed through his dark brown locks.

"Well I…" she stopped mid-sentence and looked up at the man who made it possible for her to live a little while longer.

Nibbling her bottom lip with watery eyes, Hermione reached out a hand and pulled Jason into a big hug.

"Whoa!" he cried out with a laugh before he reciprocated the hug.

Hermione held onto him for what felt like hours, taking in everything she could and relishing the moment before pulling away and wiping the tears from her eyes. Even after living through a war where she had lost so many loved ones, it still hurt to lose him.

"I should get going." She said softly with a small smile "Steve is waiting for you." she nodded her head in the direction where his little brother was playing in the field under the Oak tree.

Jason turned to watch his brother for a moment before looking back at her with a warm compassionate expression.

"You are going to make a great mum, Hermione. Your child is lucky to have you."

Jason kissed her cheek tenderly and smiled broadly before turning around and walking back to the tree. Hermione tried to hold back her tears as her heart broke for the two boys before her, and went to spin away before she collapsed in front of them. She took a step forward after collecting herself, to leave the faux dream, when Jason stopped her once again.

"Hermione?"

"Yeah?" she replied with a broken voice as she fought back tears. She refused to turn around and look back; afraid her resolve would crumble.

"I'm going to miss you too."

Hermione shut her eyes, held her breath, and pinched her lips together in an effort to hold her-self together from the agonizing loss she felt, before taking once last step to leave the heaven she created for him.

Blinking open her eyes, she found herself still kneeling at Jason's side, His breaths slowly became labored as she clutched his hand tightly. Her lower lip trembled and tears silently fell onto his bloodied chest as she slowly removed her hand from his neck and placed it on his chest.

"It's okay Jason…I am right here…You go." she expressed through her faltering voice. "You go."

He took in another shuddering breath and slowly exhaled, while Hermione watched and waited. She could feel his fading heart stutter and come to a halt as his body relaxed and his chest failed to rise again.

"I'm so sorry, Jason…I am so sorry."

Hermione finally allowed her-self to break in bitter despair and dissolved in lamentation. The curly-haired witch lowered her head and sobbed into his motionless chest. She was heartbroken to have lost such a kind friend, torn about not being able to save him, and terrified Draco and Steven might be in danger.

She cried for what felt like forever. It was like losing Ron all over again and she couldn't take it. The pain, the grief, the sorrow…it was all too much. She just wanted to go home. She wanted everyone to be able to just…go home.

Once she had cried her fill, she then considered what to do next. She wasn't sure what she should do. This wasn't like anything she ever had to deal with before. She needed to find Draco, but the thought of leaving Jason's body behind broke her. And she couldn't forget Steven…How was she going to tell him his brother died to save her? Would he even be alive for her to tell him?

The questioned raced through her mind like a speeding broom rushing passed her; question after question after question, with no clear answers waiting at the end.

Hermione sucked in a deep breath and began to stand up. Her legs were weak and her body shook in mourning, but it was nothing compared to anguish her soul bared. With her wand at her side, she stared down at Jason's lifeless body and sucked in her bottom lip. Raising the thin Vinewood up, Hermione wordlessly cast the concealment charm; hiding Jason's body until she was able to come back for him…and she would come back for him.

Taking one last look at the area he laid, she turned on her heel and started towards the fence.

Hermione walked alone for the first time in a long time. She replayed every conversation she ever had with Jason, with Ron, even with Draco. She thought after losing so many people in her life she would grow numb to the pain. She did grow numb at one point after the war, but regret and remorse always had a way of sneaking back up on her. Whether it was a mere memory, or the countless times someone died because she wasn't quick enough to react, it always came…and it always took a piece of her.

Wrapping her arms around herself, Hermione tried to hug the pain away. She lifted her right hand up to her face to wipe away a stray tear that managed to escape, but when she pulled her hand back, the color red filled her eyes. She stared at her blood covering her hand and swallowed back a whimper seemingly stuck in her throat. Her hand shook in front of her and the longer she stared, the more red it became, until it was too much to handle. Something inside her snapped. She had the sudden urge to rid the blood staining her skin and all logic and rationalizing escaped her grasp.

She went into a state of shock and started to sob uncontrollably again. She wiped her palms vigorously against her tarnished dress over and over again, but the dry blood wouldn't go away, the reminder never disappearing.

Standing in the middle of Park Way alone and scared, Hermione continued to wipe her hands on her dress in panic. Scratches and friction burns appeared on her skin as she tried and tried to remove the blood with no success.

Utterly unhinged, Hermione collapsed into a heap of despair. She fell to her knees as she covered her face and howled into her hands. Minute after minute passed by before she was able to calm herself down and as she sat there staring down at the concrete, completely detached from the world, a loud and terrifying sound blared through her eardrums.

Adrenaline surged through her bones as she slowly lifted her shaking head and turned her eyes to a large hairy slobbering beast. A Grizzly Bear about three and a half feet tall stood firmly to her right. Its left back leg was bleeding and there was a large scar across its concaved face. She assumed it was injured from the earthquake, but she couldn't be certain. What she was certain about, was that it was hurt and confused.

Hermione quickly stood up but her fast movements surprised the Grizzly. If she would have just stayed where she was and didn't move the Bear would have most likely ignored her. She cursed herself for being so stupid.

She once again reached for her wand and held it out in front of her. Her whole body shook in fear as the Grizzly took her actions as aggression; now considering her a threat. The Bear quickly bounced its front legs off the ground and stood up to its full colossal height.

Standing at a massive ten feet tall, the beast towered over her by almost five feet. Hermione took a step back and felt her balance falter, causing her to drop her wand to catch herself as she fell in terror. Landing hard on her bum, she began scrambling away to put distance between her and the mountain of a mammal.

The Bear landed back on the ground with a hard thud before letting out another powerful booming roar. Hermione whimpered as she continued to scramble backwards. The brown fur of the Grizzly bounced in the air as it began sprinting straight at her. With nothing to defend herself with, she held up an arm to protect her face, squeezed her eyes shut, and accepted the inevitable.

But nothing happened; no slashes, no weight of a six hundred pound animal on top of her, no pain, nothing. She slowly opened her eyes and lowered her arm, expecting to see the Bear before her; however something was blocking her view.

Golden fur with a thick dark brown mane attached to a feline, set sideways in front of her. The Lion stood guard before her in defense as he let out a mighty growl. The Bear showed no fear while it snarled back at the king before it; drool dripping from its chin.

Hermione's gaze was fixed on the two beasts in front of her as they both showed their impressive carnivorous fangs. The King began to paw up the ground around him while letting out a loud grunt before he half-charged as a warning.

It was thrilling to her, but also extremely frightening to see a Lion in full tyrannical rage. The Grizzly however, refused to back down and let out deep panting grunts of its own before once again standing on its hind legs to show its dominance.

But the mistake of the Bear was showing its vulnerable underbelly. The Lion sprinted at full speed, tackling the mammal at full force. Its teeth sunk deep into the beast's soft tissue causing the Bear to growl out a moan of pain. It swiped at the feline, landing its overly large claws anywhere it could.

As the two brute animals fought, Hermione turned her body and scrambled to her feet. She rushed to turn back around and watched as the Bear pinned the Lion to the ground in an angry rage. Looking around for somewhere to hide, she spotted the Great Panda Research Center at an angle to her right. Problem was, she had to run passed the fight to get to it.

As she began to race to the building, the Lion tackled the Grizzly to the ground directly in front of her. She dodged the fall and continued running while the fight continued behind her. Crashing into the Research Center's main door, she jiggled the handle in a frenzy, but it wouldn't open. The door was locked and she no longer had her wand.

Whipping her body around she looked for another place to hide with her back against the steel door. There were a few bushes in front of her, across the pathway, but they weren't large enough to cover her. She looked to her right and thought about running to hide around the side of the building, when the loud and frightening sounds of the battle, ceased.

She was afraid to look at the aftermath as she took fast shallow breaths. Not because of bloodbath that just ensued, but because she was scared of who was left standing.

Slowly twisting her head to take a peak, with a large lump in her throat, Hermione spotted the Grizzly Bear's full mass lying dead on the cement. The Lion stood above it panting hard and covered in red. It looked up at her with a snarl still resting on its mouth while its jaw dripped with fresh crimson blood.

Hermione held her breath as the King softened its features and backed away from its kill. It no longer looked intimidating or angry to her; to everyone else maybe, but to her…the fierce cat just looked like a hurt and remorseful creature.

Against all of her better judgement, Hermione stepped away from the door and curiously began to walk towards the immense feline. Her eye connected to his large golden ones and she began to feel the safe secure pull she once felt before.

Before she knew it, she was standing precisely two feet away; the closest she has ever been to the mascot of her house. She knelt down slowly, never breaking eye contact, while hesitantly reaching up a hand. She never heard the shouting for her to stop what she was doing, nor did she realize that Draco was only about a hundred feet away.

The golden orbs of the Lion were mesmerizing. They sparkled like the sun and brought a smile to her lips; she recognized those eyes anywhere. People might assume she was crazy, or that she hit her head in the earthquake, but she knew who those eyes belong to.

"Ron." She whispered with a soft grin.

Hermione reached out the last few inches needed and touched the velvet fur resting on the cat's snout. A single tear escaped through her brown lashes as the King of Beasts leaned forward and nuzzled her cheek gently. Without thinking of all the dangers associated with her actions, the curly brunette did the most extraordinarily absurd act; something she knew her friends and family would never believe…She hugged the Lion.


	11. Chapter 11- Cruelty

**Song- Ashes by Celine Dion (Deadpool 2 soundtrack)**

Chapter 11- Cruelty

 **Wednesday, July 5th, 2006 05:06pm**

Draco stood still in utter disbelief as Hermione hugged the Lion in front of him, without a care for not only her own safety, but the safety of their unborn child as well. It was one thing to watch her stand so close to the animal, it was a whole other story to see her embrace it; especially while covered in blood. He understood pregnancy brain, but he knew damn well that it never would cause a person to clasp their arms around one of the most dangerous carnivorous creature known to muggles.

If it wasn't for the fact that he was witnessing it with his very own eyes, he would never believe it was actually happening. So many questions and concerns raced through his mind as he watched in horror. Why was she covered in blood? Where was Jason? Did he go to get help? Did he abandon her? Why the _hell_ was she hugging a full grown male Lion?...Was the baby okay?

"Hermione?" his voice shook as he attempted once more to gain her attention.

He was standing only a few yards away from her now, scared to go any closer in fear the Lion would attack one or both of them. He tried to be as calm as he could, but his nerves took over his whole body.

Hermione released her grip on the King and turned her head. Her face lit up in bubbling joy when her eyes landed on him and never in his life did he feel more elated; now if he could just carefully get her away from the man eating beast, he would feel incredibly better.

"Hermione," he continued with his wand stretched out before him "get away from it." he raised his other hand and waved for her to come to him, but she didn't move. "Come on Love…Please." He begged.

Hermione turned her head back to the Lion and left a long gentle kiss upon its muzzle before standing up and watching it walk away from her. She then picked up her wand lying on the ground less than three feet away before she turned to face him, and with a large ear to ear grin, ran at full speed into his arms.

Draco entwined his hands around her body and hosted her into the air. After a few seconds he set her down gently, entangled his fingers in her hair, and held her close to his chest, refusing to let go. He knew he missed her, but it didn't register just how much, until he held her in his grasp again.

He pulled back and held her head in his hands as he began to kiss all over her blood covered face. He couldn't get enough of her and even though she was just as grimy as him, she still smelled as sweet as the day he first met her at Hogwarts. But something was not right; she wasn't acting like her usual lively self, and he felt a little disheartened when her smile faded to a frown.

Shrugging it off, he once more pulled her into a deep embrace as he shed a tear of happiness. Hermione hugged him back just as hard, if not harder, while he kissed the top of her head over and over again.

She then back out of his hold and looked up at him with a blank expression as a small tear rolled down her cheek. Draco lifted a hand and wiped the tear away with his thumb before leaning down and placing a tender kiss upon her lips.

"What happened to you?" he asked pulling back, remembering she was covered in blood "Where is Jason? Why were you so close to that Lion? Did it hurt you? Hermione…Answer me."

Hermione stared up at him with a detached expression, not saying a word.

"Hermione, why are you covered in blood?" he asked again while looking her over for any cuts in a panic.

"Draco…I'm fine." She claimed quietly.

"Where is this blood coming from?"

"It's…I-it's not mine."

Draco raised his eyes back up to her in worry. Her head was hanging low and she looked completely crushed.

"Whose blood is this, Mione?" he questioned in concern.

Hermione finally raised her amber eyes up to him and parted her lips slightly.

"Is Steve o-okay?"

"Don't worry about him right now! Tell me who this blood belongs to if it's not yours! Is the baby okay?"

"Where is Steven?"

Draco was perplexed to say the least. Why is she so concerned about the teen boy?

"He is fine for now. He was bit by a rattlesnake and I managed to get the venom out. He will still need a Healer, and I told him to hide in some bushes back there, but Hermione, he is not who I am concerned about at this moment. Now te-"

"He wasn't supposed to be in the dream." She continued, cutting him off while looking off in the distance.

"What? Who-What dream?"

"It was just supposed to be Jason."

"You have completely lost me." He replied running his fingers through his disheveled hair.

"W-we were attacked." She admitted; finally giving him something to go on.

"Attacked?" Draco's face fell as he turned her chin back to him with his finger and brushed her jaw lightly with his thumb; praying to Merlin she wouldn't say what he was thinking.

"We had to come back…We had to save you."

"Mione…Where…Where is Jason?"

Hermione blinked in an almost apathetic way before looking back at him; and with a soft distant voice, her next few words made his heart stop beating.

"Jason?"

"Yes Jason, where is he Hermione?"

"Jason's dead." Her voice was dull and emotionless.

Draco lowered his hands slowly and stepped back with surprise written all over his face.

"No…"

"What did you say?" a small voice asked from behind him.

Draco turned around to see Steven standing a few feet away with the baby Bonobo standing beside him. His mouth hung slightly open as he looked passed Draco and directly at Hermione.

"Steven-" Draco began calmly, but Steven brushed him off and took a few steps forward.

"No-What did you say?" he repeated angrily.

"Steve, it's not-" Draco tried to interrupt again, hoping Steven wouldn't bombard Hermione who looked completely out of it.

"SHE'S LYING!" he screamed as he looked to Draco before his gaze fell back on Hermione. "WHY WOULD YOU LIE ABOUT THAT?" He began to march towards her, but Draco's quick reflexes sprang into action and he snatched the teen up before he could get any closer to his wife.

Steven continued to yell and scream as Draco forcefully held on to him. He didn't want to detain the boy, but he would do anything to protect Hermione, despite the fact that she just stood there with vacant stare.

"I…I tried to save him." She uttered gently as Steven stopped fighting and erupted in sorrow "I-I wasn't fast enough."

She took a step forward while she raised her eyes to the teen; and for the first time in a long time, Draco witnessed those beautiful amber orbs fill with the one emotion he knew all too well…regret.

"I-I am so sorry."

Steven crumbled into Draco's chest as a flood of tears stained his shirt. The soul crushing cries broke his heart as they collapsed to the ground; there were no words of comfort he could speak, no wisdom he could share, because Draco knew from his own experience that there was never anything anyone could say or even do, that could take the pain away.

"Oh my apologies, am I interrupting something important?" a female voice questioned callously.

Draco lifted his head to Hermione, thinking at first that she was the one who spoke, but Hermione wasn't looking at him anymore. Whoever the voice belonged to seemed to have snapped his wife out of her remorseful trance, causing her eyes to go wide in shock.

Turning his head to the right, he held up a hand to block the sun shining in his eyes, and looked directly at the woman he had wished to never see again.

"Abby, Abby Tate? What are you doing here?"

Ms. Tate rolled her eyes and let out a light huff.

"Sightseeing" She replied sarcastically while patting her hair that was twisted in a tight bun on her head.

Draco was utterly perplexed at her being in the country, let alone the same Zoo, at the same time as them. It was shocking to the say the least, but also a bit questionable. It was too much of a coincidence for her to be there. Her outfit alone was not something someone would wear on vacation unless it was a business trip and she no longer worked for him, so the fact that she was wearing a blouse and skirt in a zoo was suspicious to him at best.

Finally learning from his mistakes, Draco thought hard about his wife's suspicions and every minor thing that happened since they left England. He thought back to the morning of their first official day in the state on the beach when Hermione thought someone was watching them, and for some miraculous reason everything clicked into place.

"It was you!" he claimed as he stood up and pushed the sniffling Slytherin Prince behind him. "You were on the beach watching us!"

"Very good Mr. Malfoy." she smirked "Seems you are finally learning to trust your dreadful Mudblood of a wife."

"Hey!" Steven called out as he poked his head from behind Draco "You shouldn't call people names!"

"Shut your mouth you Mudblood! Your blood is just as filthy as hers! And you Draco have soiled your family name! You used to think highly of your Pureblood stature, you looked down on those who were beneath you, and now you have gone and married this… _wench_!"

"Excuse me?" he exasperated with clenched fists "You know nothing of my past or me! I am not proud or a cold blooded fake, I thought you would have learned that by now; I also thought you would have learned your lesson about calling my wife that disgusting slur when I fired your arse last year! How did you even get in this country, you are supposed to be on probation."

"Are you done? Because I completely ignored _almost_ everything you just said. However, I will answer your last question…You see, after I convinced the Wizengamot that your mother cursed me to do those awful things, I decided to get out of England and start a new life in the good ole U.S. of A. I got a job in the International Department at MUSCA in New York, and for a while I was finally happy again. I left you and your traitorous ways behind and moved forward. It wasn't until I received paperwork asking to rush an order for the _Malfoy's_ that everything I felt for you came darting back into focus."

"Let me guess, you want me to pay for firing you? Or you want revenge because you lost the court case asking for money?" he claimed in vexation.

Tate let off a light giggle before taking a step forward.

"That is all trivial my dear."

"Then what do you want?"

"You." she shrugged nonchalantly.

"You can't have him." Hermione pipped in.

"He would have been mine once I got rid of you," Tate's face went sour "but you just wouldn't bloody die!"

"You w-were there when I was attacked?" Hermione asked while narrowing her brows.

"There? Of course I was there; I was there since the plane when you punched me in the face, I staggered through that dreadful earthquake in hopes something would crush you, I even released the stupid Mountain Lion from its enclosure! I wasn't going to miss your death for anything, but that stupid muggle had to jump in and save the day every time, ruining everything!"

"The plane?" Draco cut in "What the hell do you mean since the plane? You weren't there!"

"Bloody Salazar, you are slow! It's called Polyjuice you dolt, every Ministry around the world has it on hand. I studied that crazed woman for a few days before knocking her out and taking over her life…Well part of her messed up life. She wasn't hard to figure out and I am sure I would have had you in my grasp if it wasn't for your filthy wife intervening."

"You are crazy!"

"I was crazy for you, but you betrayed me! You were supposed to be mine! I slaved away for years for you, I busted my arse to help you build that company up, I stuck by your side through every up and down and you just abandoned me for _her_!"

"Abandon you? Have you lost your fucking mind? We were never a th-"

"You let the Mountain Lion out?" Hermione interrupted as she stared down at the ground.

Slowly raising her eyes up to Ms. Tate, Draco saw the animosity begin to brew on her features.

"You got Jason killed over some pathetic crush?" her brows furrowed as she clenched her fists tight "You caused a web of torment all because you couldn't grow the hell up and realize Draco never has or will ever, want you! You are the stupidest fucking _twat_ I have ever fucking met in my life! Could you be any more of a bloody fucking whore? Yes I am a muggle-born, so bloody what; we all have already figured out that my blood it just the same as yours! You aren't any better than I am, you never were. If anything you acting like a psychopath, makes you the lowest scum here!"

Draco's eyes went wide and his mouth gaped open as Hermione released her pent up anger. He had witness the brunt of her rage before, but never had he seen her like this before. Intimidating as it might have been though, he wasn't about to stop a pregnant woman on a tirade.

"I am so sick of people like you! You took the life of a smart and caring man who had his w-whole life ahead-" she choked slightly as she held back her anguished tears and Draco's heart shattered into a million pieces. "-a head of him. You caused so many afflictions for absolutely no reason."

"My reasons are sound I don't have to listen to the likes of you filthy cretins! He was the love of my life!" she held up her wand and pointed it back and forth between the group.

"You are despicable." Steven stated in a low saddened hate filled tone as he step out from behind Draco. "Do you even hear yourself?"

"Excuse me? Who the hell are-"

"Merlin's beard, shut-up! You are so bloody annoying!" he continued as everyone looked at him in astonishment "I am over here half dying from a snake bite and suffering from the loss of my brother, that _you_ got killed, and all I keep hearing is insult this and you lost your so called soulmate that; blah…blah…blah. You are the worst antagonist in the history of evil villains!"

"Steve, don't." Draco tried to intervene before Tate's rage focused on him.

"No Draco, this tosser needs to understand the truth and I demand some answers!" he claimed; not taking his eyes off Ms. Tate. "What exactly did you plan to get out of stalking them huh; do you honestly not have anything better to do with your life than create anarchy to get what you want? I mean come on, do you really think Draco bloody Malfoy, billionaire extraordinaire, wouldn't go to the ends of the earth to not only protect Hermione, but also do everything he could to find out how and why she died? You have to be mental to think you could have him after all the horse shite you have put them through. And now you want to try and have a go at dueling not one, but both of them?"

"Piss off!" she retaliated "I'm not stupid enough to duel both of them at once…That's why I brought this." she smiled maliciously while pulling out an object Draco didn't recognize.

Hermione and Steven took a step back in shock as Draco looked on in bewilderment. He had no idea what the object was, but he was sure Hermione had mentioned it to him before. Draco knew it was a muggle contraption, though he couldn't for the life of him recall the name of the foreign metal item in Tate's hand.

"You were my everything" she continued; her voice becoming more and more unstable as she spoke "I loved you! I thought killing Granger would make me happy, I thought seeing her die would bring me some sort of closure and I had a plan-oh yes I had a plan to have you. But then…I thought about it after all my failures, and I realized…you weren't worth the heartache. You Malfoy, were the cause of my downfall, you were the reason for my unhappiness not your Mudblood" She raised her hand and studied the object resting in her palm

"Do you know what this is?" she asked as her sanity continued to break apart "Muggles call it handgun; it is quiet useful I'd say. They have been used in many wars and have killed many people; there are so many different kinds too, ranging from large to even small, like this one…You want to know why I like it so much?" a sick twisted smile formed on her lips as she slowly raised her eyes to him "There is no magic, no spell, that can stop a speeding bullet."

Tate stretched out her arm and pointed the weapon directly at him. Color drained from his face as her finger rested on the trigger.

Draco stood paralyzed in place, stunned and confusion. He heard the loud bang that caused birds to fly out of the trees, but nothing else appeared to have happened. Hermione screamed out a loud mortifying cry; and as much as he wanted to, he couldn't look away from the smug faced Tate standing before him.

Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion as Tate lowered her arm that held the gun. Before he knew it, a bright white light shot passed his face as he saw Hermione step up next to him from the corner of his eye. His head finally looked over to her and saw the anger and fear seething on her perfect, yet scratched up dirty skin. He had no idea what was happening and he had no clue as to why Hermione became so overwhelmed with a grief stricken expression, but as he looked back to the vile woman who fired the pistol, he saw her holding her right arm that was now covered with red slashes. The revolver rested on the ground and she looked to be severely injured.

The curse just grazed her, making Tate even angrier than she already was. But before Hermione could fire off another spell, the Lion that Draco thought had left them came out of nowhere, leaped into the air, and began to attack Tate. He heard the screams of the woman caught off guard and he could hear the claws ripping away at flesh before everything suddenly went quiet.

Steven ran in front of Draco with the baby Bonobo trailing behind, cutting off the view of the obsessive lunatic.

"DRACO! DRACO, ARE YOU OKAY?" He shouted while Hermione turned to look at Draco; but their voices were muffled.

He was even more confused when he saw the terrified look on their faces. Suddenly his breathing felt labored and he felt a warm liquid begin to drip down the left side of his stomach. He began to look down as time continued to move at snails pace. Everything was happening all at once, yet ever so steadily.

Draco's eyes finally landed on his ribs and he saw his own blood start to seep through his t-shirt. He sucked in a deep breath through a partly open mouth when he finally understood what was going on. He had never experienced a gun shot before and he had only ever heard about how dangerous the muggle cannon really was.

His hands hovered shakily over the injury just below his left peck like they wanted to touch the wound, but at the same time were too scared to go any further. His legs went weak when the adrenaline started to fade. He could feel Hermione grab a hold of him as he began to fall to the ground and then the pain started to kick in.

The feeling was an intense torment he wished would just go away, but his body refused to act on it. His voice failed him as he tried to speak and his mind raced while staring up into the bright clear blue sky. Shadows of Hermione and Steven hovered over him as he tried to listen to what they were saying, but his ears were ringing and prevented him from hearing a thing; his thoughts only focusing on one thing…pain.

"DRACO!" Hermione called out as her hand cradled his cheek "Draco, look at me!"

He could finally hear her again; her angel like voice echoing through his head, bringing him back to her. A warm liquid sensation trailed down his cheek and into her hand. She quickly wiped it away and that is when he realized he was crying, and he didn't even know it.

Time immediately sprung back to normal and the ringing faded away, he could now hear everything around him; the lion's roar as it tore Tate limb from limb, the young Slytherin crying in a panic while asking Hermione what they were going to do, Hermione trying to hold it together as she surveyed the bullet wound, and the baby Bonobo screaming in a frenzied state.

He gritted his teeth in sheer agony while his breaths became short and shallow. He was breathing hard as his body tried to fight the hot foreign object that inserted itself beneath his skin.

"I...am going…to _fucking_ kill her!" he claimed in anger as sweat began to drip from his forehead.

"She is already dead!"

"Then I am going... _to kill_ …her _fucking_ ghost!" he cried out while throwing his head back in pain.

He felt like he was just hit in the gut by a Bludger over and over again.

"Shh." She hushed at him gently "It is going to be okay, I am going to fix this…I-I don't know how, but I am going to fix this." she claimed through tears. "I won't lose you too!"

She quickly looked up at Steven and paused for a moment.

"Your shirt; give me your shirt!" she demanded with an out stretched blood covered hand.

After her request Draco noticed that Hermione was holding pressure on his side. He could feel the pain the bullet caused inside him, but the overwhelming torture prevented him from feeling the pressure she applied. His breathing was staggering as he tried to suck in air multiple times and that seemed to be all he was able to do.

She grabbed the shirt from the boy and replaced her hands quickly with the fabric.

"Help me!" she yelled to Steven while maneuvering her hands around his shoulder.

Draco didn't know what she was doing, although he knew that the last time she helped him with a wound, he not only lived, but she walked him through the processes so he felt as less pain as possible. However this time was different; she didn't look at him anymore or say comforting words, she didn't walk him through what she was doing, she didn't even speak directly to him; which made the situation all the more real.

 _ **XX**_

' _This was his entire fault. He deserved this. He put Hermione in danger one too many times and this was Karma coming back to bite him in the arse. He deserved to die. Ironic how life worked though; the one thing he used to hate more than Hermione's blood was muggles and their inventions. What better way to go than by the something they created.'_

"M-mione-" he tried to call to her, but she ignored him and continued assessing the damage.

"On the count of three, roll him towards you." she stated with a serious expression to Steven.

' _Shite'_

"One…"

' _Fuck this is going to hurt.'_

"Two..."

On three, Hermione pushed his shoulder up while Steven pulled on Draco's side. The pain intensified and Draco let out a loud agonizing cry while clamping his eyes closed as tight as he could.

"There's no exit hole...There is not exit hole!" she shrieked in fear.

"So the bullet is still in there?" Steven asked through his tears.

They lowered Draco back down and he once again let off a jarringly painful howl. The burning pain radiated through his whole body and his ribs felt like they were on fire. His breaths became shorter and he could practically feel Hermione's alarmed uneasiness radiating off her body, making him panic even more. He didn't want to die; not really. He wanted to be there for Hermione, grow old with her. He had just made up his mind about wanting the baby she carried; he wasn't ready to leave everything behind, but he could feel his life draining away, he could feel the pull of his soul wanting to leave his damaged body, and there was nothing he could do about it.

' _Was this what she felt like when she was impaled? Did she think the same things?'_

"Water?" she cried out as she looked up to the sky "Where is all this water coming from?" she asked when her gaze landed back on Steven's soaked shirt.

"Hermione…" Steven began sadly "You're crying."

Hermione looked down at her hands and Draco watched as a tear dropped on to her palm. She reached the hand up to wipe the tear away, but stopped suddenly and looked at Steven.

"I…I need you to wipe my face. I don't want to contaminate the wound. Wipe my face." She begged as tears continued to stream down her porcelain skin.

Steven leaned forward and wiped her face with his fingers before leaning back on his knees and tried to think of something, anything, he could do to help.

"I-I don't w-want t-to die." Draco exclaimed as the area around the wound turned to an unexpected achy feeling. His temperature grew cold while he sucked in what little breaths he could.

She finally looked down at him with the saddest features he had ever seen. He didn't want her to feel bad for him; he never wanted her to cry over him. She deserved the world and he was not going to be able to give it to her. He put her in danger, without even trying. Even when he was trying to help, he put her in danger. He didn't think he deserved her tears.

"You _ARE NOT_ dying!"

Draco reached up a hand, cupped her cheek, and wiped away a perfect tear drop with his thumb as he looked into her misty amber eyes. He loved her with all his heart. She was his whole world and he had spent years trying to find a way to get close to her. Even if it was just to be a friendly acquaintance, he spent years. And apparently she did too.

He realized then, that it wasn't just him who mattered anymore. They had both took time out of their lives to search for the other. They had both spent many hours, days, months, just to know one another; her tears where the confirmation he needed, just to stay alive. If he died on her, she would break…Just like he broke when she died on him.

He never wanted her to go through the pain he felt as he watched her body rise off the ground when they shocked her heart. He never wanted her to experience the agony, the fear, the regret he felt when he watched her heart beat monitor go flat and the eerie sound of the machine told him she was gone.

She was worth living for; everything that she was, her flaws, integrity, their baby, he wanted it all. And Draco Malfoy was determined to get what he wanted.

"I am going to fix this Draco, I just…I just need to remember what spells to use." She stated through her tears.

Her tears could melt the hearts of millions. She could drown the whole world with her tear drops and he would still swim a thousand miles _and_ more through them, just to comfort her.

"Her-Hermione…" he began again as she looked on him with sorrow. "I w-want…you to k-keep it."

"What?" she asked confused.

"The…b-baby…I want… t-to keep…him."

"And how do you know it's a boy?" She raised a brow.

"I… I love you." He claimed through faulty breaths.

"Don't do that!" she cried out "Don't you dare try to say goodbye! I will fix this, I will! I just need to to extract the bullet and its fragments!"

"I h-have…no d-doubts …I w-wasn't…" Draco sucked in a deep painful breath and clenched his eyes tight while he hissed through his teeth.

He noticed that Steven was holding his hand and the boy gripped onto him tight like he was afraid that if he let go, Draco would leave him forever.

"I w-wasn't p-planning…on…on d-dying t-today."

"Good!...Because that would be the worst break up ever!" she laughed lightly with a sniffle.

Draco chuckled slightly but hissed just as quickly. Hermione apologized for making him laugh through the torment, but he saw it as relief; a sweet blessed relief, before the fight left his body and his eyes closed…refusing to open again.

...

 _Draco awoke in a memory he never thought he would relive. The windows of the large cathedral sparkled with bright colors as the sun shone through the stained glass. A muggle church was not his first pick for the location of their wedding, but he had to admit it was stunning._

 _Hermione and her parents had wanted no magic, except for the ceremony due to wizarding law, so he opted to let her have the wedding in her parents church. His love for her was strong enough to sacrifice his wants and anything she desired he would give to her; even if it meant having all of her family involved._

 _Draco continued to look around the building as the choir began to sing songs he never heard before. White Lilies covered the aisle as Ginny walked down the cardinal carpet carrying James and his nerves started to get the best of him._

" _You okay mate?" Harry asked with a nudge._

" _Yeah, just…I-I'm fine." He replied while straightening his tie._

" _You're nervous." he smiled "It's perfectly normal. I was too when I got married." He nodded his head at Ginny, who was walking to her position at the altar, before continuing. "Trust me, nerves are a good thing."_

" _Yeah." Draco sighed._

" _We all wouldn't be here mate if she decided to run."_

" _I'm not afraid of her running." Draco whispered as he turned to Harry._

" _You are. I know you are" Harry turned his head and gave him a friendly smirk "She has seen the worst in you, and she has also seen the best in you, and she still chose you; in a hundred lifetimes, a hundred worlds, in any version of reality, she would find you and she would choose you. She loves you Malfoy, don't ever doubt that."_

" _How would you know she would always choose me?" he raised a perplexing brow._

 _Harry let out a quick breath through his nose and smiled softly._

" _Because she is the one who told me to tell you that, in case you became apprehensive about her wanting to marry you."_

 _Before Draco could even respond, the crowd stood up from the pews and looked to the back of the church. Raising his eyes to the end of the aisle, he gleamed as the large arched wooden doors opened, and the most beautiful bride he ever imagined stood with an arm entwined through her fathers._

 _Her large Lilly bouquet covered the center of her body as she smiled widely at him. Every worry he had before that moment vanished into thin air and Draco was left with nothing but a heart filled with as much love as it could muster._

 _He never dreamed of loving anyone as much as he did Hermione. All throughout school he imagined a lonely bitter filled life married to someone he could never love no matter how hard he tried. Never did he think Hermione Jean Granger of all people would break his mold and give him the time of day; not after everything he put her through. But there she was, walking down the aisle towards him with love in her eyes, about to marry him._

 _The closer she got the more excited he became and somewhere in the back of his mind, Draco finally gathered why he had trouble falling asleep at night when she was always right there to comfort him. This moment right here, right now, this reality, was finally better than any dream he could ever create._ _This is where he found that life can mean more than what he experienced growing up; where he found out that family wasn't just a blood bond and home wasn't just a building or a mansion to live in…it was her- and he couldn't wait to finally be home._


	12. Chapter 12- Hope

**A/N: This is it guys! Last chapter before the epilogue! It has been a crazy journey so far and I feel this story went above and beyond my expectations; especially since I didn't really have a plan in place for it and basically winged it. I received so many requests for a sequel that I just had to do it for all who fell in love with the first story. Thank you guys so much for your patients and support; it means the world to me. Don't forget to follow me to keep up to date on new stories down the road. I have some good ones in store for you!**

Chapter 12- Hope

 **Saturday, July 8th, 2006 10:10am**

Hermione sat at Draco's bedside in Kindred Hospital San Diego, staring down at unopened letters delivered by owl earlier that morning. It had been three days since the massive overdue earthquake and two days since Draco was moved to the new location due to overflow.

After he had passed out, Hermione was able to extract the bullet lodge in ribs before help arrived. Search and Rescue combed the zoo for hours looking for any survivors. They had heard the gun shot from the other side of the park and happened across them just as she pulled the round out. He was quickly rushed to the closest evacuation point just outside the zoo for emergency surgery in the field; and all she could do from that point on, was pray to Merlin that he survived.

The medics refused to let her near Draco while they cut into him, and others whisked Steven away just as quickly to treat the snake bite he receive. Feeling hopeless and alone, she sat on a cooler in a small tent down the street and waited. The hours ticked by ever so slowly and it caused her to replay all of the events that took place that day.

During the transition from the zoo, Hermione released the spell hiding Jason's body and told fireman where to find him. She knew that if one good thing could come out of all that hell, it would be giving his family something to bury…and she could speak from experience.

She had become desensitized over the years to the pain of loss, but somehow the demons within her still found their way to the surface. Something inside her cracked when she saw the firemen finally carry Jason's body from the zoo; she knew it was him even with the black zipped tarp covering his face, and as she watched them set him down in a row with other zipped up bags, she lost charge of her mind, and snapped. Tear drop after tear drop continued to plunge to the ground well after she thought there was nothing else left.

Inconsolable and out of control, a doctor working on a patient close to her had to sedate her in fear of her harming not only herself, but others around her. She was forced to check in to the psych ward for 24 hour surveillance as the doctors at the hospital deemed her too unstable. They diagnosed her with survivors' guilt, which in her opinion, weighed more heavily on her soul than the PTSD she had suffered after Voldemort's collapse.

Once the hospital cleared her and the baby, Hermione stopped at the somehow still standing Villa they were staying in to get some fresh clothes. She had managed to clean up the mess with a few spells and pack a bag for Draco, but in the process of packing a few items for herself, she found the space book Regina had given her husband just the other day. She picked it up off the floor and opened it up, as curiosity got the better of her, and flipped through a few pages. She was just about to close it when a page on meteor showers caught her attention.

As she scanned through the paragraphs, one sentence made her heart stop cold. Even in muggle literature, they still believed in signs. According to the book, having a fight during the cosmic event was considered bad luck for things to come. She remembered both the time she saw the shooting star and the shower occurring when Draco walked out, and cursed herself for momentarily believing that the fortune teller wasn't a fraud. She didn't believe in Divinations ever since Trelawney, but it was hard for her to not deny that it was a very big coincidence.

After getting her thoughts together, Hermione head back to the hospital and juggled the remaining time between Draco and Steven's rooms. Steven's Aunt and Uncle checked him out early, against the hospitals wishes, and the entire time they were there, she could see the fear and resentment they held against him. It crushed her heart to see them treat him so terribly. It was like Harry's childhood all over again and she wanted nothing more than to help him. But she couldn't. She could only imagine how his parents would react when they found out the news.

Draco however, had soot in his throat and lungs on top of the gunshot wound, so the surgeons were forced to put him in a medically induced coma, after his surgery, while his body tried to heal itself. Due to being a wizard though, his wounds healed a lot faster than anyone expected and they reversed the medication keeping him asleep, ahead of schedule. It was only a matter of time now before he woke up and she could see his gorgeous grey eyes again. She missed him, more than words could say.

Letting out a small sigh, Hermione continued to stare at the letters addressed to her and Draco. She had sent Harry a letter after her release, letting him know that everyone was okay and ask him if he knew anything that could explain her connection to the Lion. He had finally responded via Express Owl, but she was hesitant to open the envelope in fear that it would say something she couldn't handle.

The other letter was addressed in neat cursive to Draco specifically and she had an inkling on who it was from. She wasn't going to open it though. She knew that in the end, it was up to her husband on whether or not he wanted to read what his mother had to say. She half wished to burn the thing and never mention it again, but lies and secrets already got them into one mess, she didn't want to create another. Her curiosity also got the better of her and she deemed the letter too important to throw out.

Setting the parcels on her lap, Hermione turned the envelope from Harry over and started to open it. Pulling out the parchment, another letter fell from the folded sheet and on to the floor. She leaned down to pick it up when she saw her name written in a penmanship she recognized all too well.

Sucking in a breath, Hermione opened Harry's letter and began to read it carefully.

 _Hermione,_

 _Words cannot express how happy I am to hear that you are alright. Myself, Ginny, and the rest of the Weasley clan were beside ourselves with worry over you and Malfoy after we heard what happened in California. We were told that aftershocks can occur at any time, but they will be smaller than the one you had to deal with. Please stay safe while you are there. Oh and Mrs. Weasley wants me to tell you, that as soon as you can come straight home so she can care for both of you herself. She doesn't trust muggle medicine and wants to have you both checked out at St. Mungo's ASAP. Mr. Weasley of course wants to study the effects of the medicine on a wizard, but that request was denied as soon as he brought it up. (Keep Malfoy away from him. I fear he will try and study him regardless.)_

 _We all also want to express to you how I terribly sorry we are to hear of the loss you occurred over your trip…and the loss we all share as well. I know that there is nothing I can say to ease any of that pain for you; just know we are all here for you, if and when you need us._

 _Anyway, I know you are eager to hear a reply on what you mentioned in your letter and I did look into both requests for you. As for Steven's predicament, I talked to Kingsley about what you stated and he said he would do a bit of research for you and get back to me via Owl as soon as he figured something out. But trust me when I say, that I refuse to let that boy go through the same thing I did. We_ _ **will** __fix this for him._

 _As for the Lion situation; I honestly couldn't find anything about it in any books or at the Ministry, so I asked around and I only found one viable piece of evidence that might explain the odd encounters. I can't really explain it well through writing, but I was told by George that it is some sort of link. He became guarded when I pressed further and wouldn't tell me anymore. He did say to ask Malfoy though, which is odd; however…Sorry, it just hard to write…however, I think it is time I give you something that might help you better than any of us. Something I never should have kept from you._

 _I have enclosed the letter Ron had written you before his, well before what happened to him. Maybe his words will bring you the answers you need, and more importantly, bring you comfort. I know what he did to you was wrong and there is no excuse for the trouble he placed on all of us, but try to give his words a chance. He_ _is_ _…was, our best friend Mione. Don't let one mistake ruin the thousand memories we share of him. I am not asking you to forgive him for his wrong doings, I am simply just asking you to keep an open mind and an open heart._

 _We love you; return to us safely._

 _Love Always,_

 _Harry_

 _PS- Please don't be mad at Malfoy for hiding anything from you. It was my fault for not telling you myself in the first place. Please tell him I am sorry for putting that burden on him and that we all wish him a quick and speedy recovery._

Hermione stared at the envelope Harry attached and studied the handwriting on the front. She had to admit she missed Ron more than words could say, but forgiveness was a long ways away. He had caused her too much grief by cursing her, and even though he didn't do it of his own free will, he still chose to have Narcissa Malfoy help him get what he desired.

Harry was right though, she might not be able to forgive Ron, but she could at least listen to what he had to say; even if it wasn't what she wanted to hear.

Slowly running a finger over the writing on the cover, she listened as Ron's voice said her name in the back of her mind. Swallowing slightly, Hermione turned the envelope over and freed the parchment inside.

 _My Dearest Hermione, (I hope you are okay with me saying that)_

 _This is by far the hardest letter I have ever had to write in my life. I know hearing from me is the last thing you want and I won't blame you if you stop reading now and just throw this parchment away. What I did to you and Malfoy, well there-there is no justifying it. I was selfish and desperate and even that is not a good enough reason for what I did. All I can say it how sorry I am for hurting you. I regret everything. I know you won't ever forgive me and I am not expecting you to. I don't deserve any sort of mercy and I know I will never earn your trust back. But I am sorry. I am truly and deeply sorry for the emotional pain I caused you. It eats away at my soul every day and I pray to Merlin for an absolution…but I know it will never come._

 _My hate for Malfoy ran too deep for me to comprehend my actions, but as I sit here in this dark and cold cell, I realized that it was not my place to try and break you away from him. Please don't be mad at him, but he did visit me many times over the year and I got to know the real Draco. He has been my only visitor since being put in this prison, other than Harry this one time, who will hold on to this letter for me._

 _At first I still resented Malfoy, but he kept coming, even when I refused to speak a word or look in his direction. It took a long time for me to finally give in and look at him; but as soon as I did, the pain I felt at losing you began to soften. He caught me up on your life and how you were fairing. He told me about your engagement and how excited he was to marry you. He kept me sane in this bloody hell hole. (Of all people, who would have guessed?)_

 _It is strange for me to admit it but it was actually nice talking to the git; even if I was forced into it at first. He loves you Mione, more than I ever could. He promised me he would protect you at all costs and I could see it in his eyes that he meant every word of it._

 _What I am trying to say, is that the bloke isn't half bad once you get to know him. I still see him as our childhood nemesis, though Ginny was right about him changing. Everyone deserves a second chance. And if we are being fair here, everything he did and said to us at school was not okay, but the torment he put us through was nothing compared to the unforgivable act I carried out. If anyone should suffer here, it's me and I am._

 _Anyways, I know for certain that you will never see me again and I have finally come to terms with that. If I did it correctly, which I hope I did, I know you will have a ton of questions about something in the near future that you can't explain and you won't find in any book I know you have researched. I guess I have Malfoy to thank for it. Draco this time, not his awful mother. And before you blow your top on him, I want you to know that it was not a secret. Think of it more as a surprise gift-to both of us._

 _I want to wish you all the best on your life. I am happy for you, really. You will always be my best friend. You may not see it that way anymore and I completely understand, but please remember what you said in your speech during Fred's funeral, as it still holds true to this day._

' _We may have lost so many loved ones during our fight for freedom and we may feel dead ourselves inside. There may not be a way to fix the past, but there is always a way to rebuild our future. Cherish the good memories made though out our lives, even if we are no longer connected to the person we once shared them with. Don't dwell on the mistakes made for they were never truly made to harm you; if they were, they wouldn't be called mistakes. Hang on to the lives still around and tell them every chance you get how much you love them, because even though we may feel broken, we aren't. We are just…slightly bent. And the ones we love, will always be right there to help us stand up straight again.'_

 _I think you harnessed your inner Dumbledore a little too well. Although I will never forget your words Hermione, I repeated them every night to help me fall asleep. I still do._

 _Nerveless, I think it is time I finally stepped aside and let someone else love you more than I can. Don't annoy the git too much alright; he might not deserve you, but he will certainly do his best to try._

 _Also before I go, I know you will hear of some news in the coming days and I don't want you to blame yourself. And please don't blame Malfoy either; he doesn't know anything other than that he helped me find a way to, I guess I could say, watch over you. Not in a creepy stalker like way, more like a protector since we apparently share a link due to my unspeakable crime. Stay strong through it, okay? I know you can. You are stronger than all of us._

 _I love you Hermione. I always have and I always will._

 _Ron Weasley_

A single tear drop fell on to the parchment as Hermione read Ron's last words. She never expected something so proper and so heartfelt from him, but then again, she never really gave him the appropriate credit. His message made it hard for her to hate him. He did quote her word for word and the letter was the most sincere he has ever been…ever will be. She owed it to herself to at least try to move forward. Only problem was, now that he was gone, she didn't know how.

She reread the last line over and over again until the words blurred together. She began to wipe her eyes when she heard Draco grumble slightly. Lifting her head, she observed him as he awoke from his slumber and it took everything in her to not jump on top of him in delight.

He looked tired and weak, but as his eyes connected to hers, a small smile appeared at the corner of his mouth making her heart fill with happiness. Setting the parcels on the bed Hermione stood up, cupped his face in both her hands, and kissed her husband with a great passion. The kiss was deep and filled with such warmth that caused an aching need to just want to hold on to each other forever.

Hermione pulled back slightly and rested her forehead against his. Their lips just lightly grazing against each other as they stayed connected, basking in each other's presence. Draco reached up and began caressing her jaw line like he was memorizing the feel of her skin. His fingers brushing against her face, bringing goosebumps to the surface, helped her relax, as she closed her eyes, and finally…breathed.

It had been too long since she felt composed. Ever since their first big fight she had felt the weight of the world on her shoulders. Knowing he was alive and really there aided in calming her thoughts, bringing tranquility back into the mist.

"Merlin's beard, I missed you" he whispered in a hoarse voice while raising his eyes to hers. "but we really need to stop meeting like this."

Hermione giggled lightly before leaning in to place a quick gentle kiss upon his lips.

"I couldn't agree more." She grinned with a scrunch of her nose.

"Next time let's go somewhere where Mother Nature can actually be predicted."

"How about for now we just…go home?"

"You are my home, Love. As long as you are with me, I will always be home."

"Gods you have become soft!" she laughed.

She broke away from him and smacked him lightly in the arm.

"You love it." he smirked.

"That I do." She replied, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

An awkward silence filled the room as they both stared down at their fingers. There was so much she wanted to talk about with him, but for some odd reason, she didn't know where or how to even start.

"So how are you feeling?" she asked "I should grab the nurse-"

"I meant what I said." He quickly cut in, making her tilt her head to the side and look at him in confusion. "I want you to keep the baby, Hermione…I-I want us to be a family."

"Wha-"

"I involuntarily did some soul searching while in the Zoo and realized…I did more to protect that monkey-"

"Primate." She corrected and he lifted his eyes to her.

Letting out a huff through his nose, he smiled before looking back down at his hands.

"Primate" he continued "and I did more to protect Steve than my own father would have ever done for me. I didn't do it out of responsibility or because it was expected of me, I did it because I actually cared about their well-being. I cared about their safety and they both sort of, I don't know, grew on me. I felt a connection to them like they were mine and it made me think about our situation…I'm not scared anymore; I want to be a father to that baby."

"Really?" she beamed.

"Really."

Hermione let out a squeal before hugging the daylights out of him in excitement.

"Oh, I knew you would come around!" she claimed as she released him.

"Yeah well, you can thank Steve for being the one to finally break me in…Speaking of which, where is he? Is he okay? Are you okay? What happened to the monk-primate? What happened with Tate? Is the baby okay?"

"Slow down." she grinned "First, The baby is fine; second, I talked to the police here and a few Auror's. I explained what happened and they are investigating the situation. MACUSA will also want to talk to you. They have been waiting _ever so_ patiently for you to wake up."

"In other words they are going crazy trying to figure out how I won't sue them for allowing that lunatic into the country." He rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Precisely." She chuckled "As for the Bonobo, she was taken by a staff member at the Zoo. As cute as it was, it was still property of the park and couldn't come with us; besides the hospital would not have allowed it in. She'll be fine though, her name is Sophie, and they said you have free access to visit her anytime you desire; as a thank you for saving her life."

"So it was a girl? I thought it was boy the whole time." he shrugged "What about Steve? How is he doing after everything?"

"Well…"

"Well, what?" he raised a brow "Please tell me he is okay."

"He's fine, physically…mentally, not so much."

She continued to fill Draco in on the boy's circumstance and brought him up to speed on her own condition as well since he refused to drop the subject until she told him.

"I knew you would save me." He claimed gently.

"Can we…Can we not talk about that right now? Please?"

Draco's face fell to a frown, but he nodded his head and took her hand in his.

"Are you okay though? You have been through a lot."

"Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

"I can't help but worry my love."

"I should go get the nurse." She stood up abruptly and removed her hand. "They are going to want to examine you."

"Oh…Yeah okay." He frowned again.

But she quickly left a kiss on his forehead before making her way out.

"Mione?" he called out to her.

Hermione stopped in her track and rested a hand on the edge of the open door before looking back to him.

"You're not crazy you know? Just because you had a melt-down doesn't mean you're weak."

"I know." She spoke quietly.

"I don't think you do." She removed her hand from the door and fully turned to face him. "We are all allowed to have our moments, Love. But that doesn't make you helpless or defective, it makes you human. I would be worried if you didn't crumble. What we went through-what _you_ went through is enough to cause anyone to break. Just know that I love you regardless and I will always be here for you when you are ready to talk."

"Thank you." she replied with a half-smile forming on her lips "I'm going to get the nurse, alright?"

Draco nodded his head and she turned out the door.

XXX

 **010:46am**

As soon as the door closed, Draco felt scared and alone. He didn't want to admit to Hermione that muggle hospitals scared him. Ever since last years' incident, he never wanted to be in another hospital again. But there he was, sitting alone in a plain white suit; although this time he was the one hooked up to machines.

Letting out a deep sigh, Draco began looking around the room as he waited for his wife to return. His eye caught on an open parchment near the end of his bed and he raised a brow in wonderment. Readjusting himself, which was painful at best, he reached forward and picked up the once folded paper.

His eyes grew wide as he read the letter Ron had written her and even though the git mentioned for her to not be mad at him, he knew she still would be. Behind that letter was a second one from Harry, and as much as he didn't want to read her personal mail, he couldn't help himself from inquiring what was written.

He had just finished the last line of Harry's letter when Hermione came back into the room. He quickly placed Ron's letter back on top and set the parchments on his lap.

"The nurse said she will be in in a minute or so; she is just checking on another pat…ient- What is that? Are you reading my lett-"

"We need to talk." he muttered softly.

"You're damn right we do! Where to you get off invading my personal things?"

Draco raised his eyes to her before looking back down at the letter.

"That's not why you are really mad."

"Excuse me?" she stated angrily while crossing her arms; however her anger was played out and he knew she wasn't really mad.

"I'm sorry."

"You're sorry? That was personal!"

"Then why did you leave it open on the bed?"

"I-I forgot to put it away!"

"No you didn't." he sighed "You don't forget things like that. You wanted me to read it because you wanted to ask me about what he wrote and you didn't know how to start…I don't want to fight with you, darling. I want to explain everything."

Hermione sighed just as a nurse entered the room behind her.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt. I can come back when you're ready." The nurse claimed when she saw the expressions radiating off the couples faces.

"No" Hermione stated while not taking her softened eyes off Draco "no its okay. We are ready" She brushed her hands on her jeans before taking a seat.

The nurse nodded her head and quickly checked Draco over. After scribbling a few notes on his chart, she bowed her head and exited the room.

"Can we talk now?" Draco asked as he looked at his wife slumped over in a chair in the corner.

Hermione let out another sigh and moved the chair closer to him. She took her seat but kept her eyes to the ground.

"Why did you visit him?" she asked after a moment of silence. "You knew how I felt about him."

"I did. But I also knew where he was coming from."

She raised her head up and eyed him skeptically.

"What?"

"Loving you isn't easy, you know."

"That's a rude thing to say."

Draco let out a light laugh and slightly tilted his head to the side.

"I don't mean it to be…What I am trying to say, is that loving you, it's all consuming. It is a good thing…Most of the time."

"Most of the time?"

"Hermione, Love, you are always on my mind. Always. There is not a second that passes that I don't think of you. What you are doing, what you're thinking, what you're wearing." He laughed lightly "But sometimes that can interfere with my task at hand. Work mainly, but I am lucky enough to be able to come home to you afterwards and snog and shag the shite out of you to make up for putting you to the side for those brief moments to concentrate…Weasley didn't have that."

"He could have found another girl to love, he could have moved on." She held out a hand before crossing her arms in a huff. "He didn't even try."

"You think it's easy to stop loving you? I know you feel the same about me, so what if I just broke things off and told you to move on while I dated someone you hated? Would it be easy for you stop loving me?"

"Well no but-"

"But nothing. He didn't have a choice in forgetting you Mione. You lot were best friends. It was hard for him to just stand on the sides while his childhood enemy took the love of his life away. What he did was wrong, but at least he owned up to it; and since you wouldn't visit him to hear his side…I did it instead."

"What did you help him with?" she questioned promptly.

Draco sucked in a deep breath before letting it out slowly; knowing the question was coming sooner rather than later. He just wished he wasn't stuck in a hospital bed when it finally came.

"Weasley wanted to make up for all his wrong doings, but he was trapped in a grungy cell for a few more years and he knew you wouldn't see him after his release. I promised I would help him find a way to...reach out to you, in a sense. I did a bit of research on the dark magic he used. I found a book in my father's study and I figured out that when the Imperius curse is used for a long period of time, usually more than 24 hours consecutively, it can cause a link between caster and victim. It's extremely rare but it happens."

"So you discovered that he and I shared a link?"

"Yes."

"So what exactly did you do to help him 'reach out to me'?"

"Well, I knew you wouldn't listen to anything I had to say about him, so I tried looking into to how he could send you a message through the link; like how a Patronus can send messages. But I couldn't find anything. So I tried to find other ways…"

"Like what?" she asked with her interest now peaked.

"Okay, um…You know how Dementors are no longer used as prison guards, but they are still used for executions?"

"Yes, they are notoriously known for the Dementors' kiss." She replied "But I don't see how they connect to all this."

"They are in a way…Weasley was sentenced to five years, but he still had the possibility of receiving the kiss."

"What? How?"

"New evidence was found in one of your memories…He-he apparently tried to have sex with you, but you fought back through the curse. He withdrew as soon as it happened; however the memory was cut short because at the time you were only semi coherent…It-it looked more like he was trying to rape you."

"But he didn't…I don't think…Didn't they take any of his memories to see the rest?"

"The Wizengamot refused to use any of his memories in the trial since he was also under the curse and my mother's power was stronger. She could have very well altered any, if not all, of his memories. Even so, they debated on whether or not Weasley trying to shag you while you were in that condition was still considered 'attempted rape'. Rape, in wizarding law, is considered a heinous act and it is punishable by death. A lot of the Death Eaters caught after Voldemort's fall received the kiss for that deed alone. "

Draco paused and watched Hermione's face intently, trying to read her reaction to hearing the news. But she just sat in the chair looking at her hands.

"Anyway" he continued "I was furious when he told me, but once I heard the rest of the story and did some digging, I started to believe that he wasn't seeking to hurt you. Don't get me wrong, I still wanted to rip his throat out for even trying, but he said he realized his mistake as soon as he snapped out of his own trance. My mother apparently had put the idea in his head that if he got with you, then you wouldn't want to come running back to me. She altered his thoughts."

"So it wasn't really him trying to shag me." She claimed, but it was more of a statement than a question.

"No Love, it wasn't really him. He was sucked too deeply into my mother's grasp and she manipulated him."

Hermione raised her eyes and parted her lips as she sucked in a shallow breath.

"So-so his sentence wasn't fully enacted?"

"No."

"How did you help him? What did you do, Draco?"

"I rummaged through the Manor's library. We have books you couldn't even find in the Restricted Section at Hogwarts. But I couldn't find anything. On my way out though, I found an old very rare book hidden in the floor boards near the back. One of the house elves must have hidden it there when Voldemort took our house as his base. It was a book on white magic. I didn't even know there was such a thing, but it mentioned how to create a Patronus and other things…It also contained a spell on how to hide the essence of a soul in the event of one's death."

"Essence of a soul? It's that the same thing as a horcrux?"

"Yes and no. It isn't created the same way and it is only temporary. It is also only the essence, not the soul itself. Instead of killing someone to place their soul in an object, the caster has to be the one to die and the essence of who they once were would place itself into something living. It is a way for loved ones to say good-bye to each other I guess, but a link has to be established first. Your link with Weasley, even through dark magic, could still be used."

"So you did know Ron was going to kill himself!" she claimed angrily as her fists tightened around the chairs' arms.

"What? No! It was a last resort contingent on if he received the kiss. I didn't know the man would cut his life short! I knew he was depressed, but Salazar Hermione, I didn't think it was bad enough for him to do what he did! The last time I spoke to him he seemed happier than he ever had been. Then we got married and all this shite happened. I haven't seen him since; I swear to you I didn't know what his plan was."

"Jason was right." She sighed heavily.

"What? What does any of this have to do with Jason?"

"He told me he wanted to get you when the Lion thing happened. He told me that you might be able to help me and he was right, you knew all along."

"What Lion thing?" he asked perplexed "You mean when I found you? He was already gone by then."

"No," she let out a breath and leaned back "after you left with Steve we went to see the Lion before heading to the Elephants. I-I had a connection with it. I couldn't explain what happened and he asked me multiple times if he could grab you. I-I should have just let him get you."

"That's why you were hugging that thing when I found you?"

She nodded her head while wiping away a tear.

"It saved me from the Grizzly…It's eyes looked so much like Ron's, Draco. I swear it was him."

"Merlin's beard, his Patronus wasn't a Lion was it? According to the book, the spirit attaches to a living being which represents the individual's innermost personality."

"No, his Patronus was a Jack Russel Terrier."

"Are you sure it didn't change? When was the last time you saw him produce one?"

"Um; during the final battle, I think. I haven't seen him cast another one since Fred's death."

"Lion's represent courage; which is why your house mascot is one. It is possible his changed to one after everything you all went through."

"Yeah…" she stated softly.

"Mione, I am sorry for everything."

"Don't be. Just…No more secrets, okay? I am so done with being kept in the dark."

"I promise no more secrets."

"Thank you for helping him." she leaned forward and rested her elbows on her knees.

"I didn't do it for him. I did it for you."

"Still…Thank you." she claimed as a delicate smile formed on her lips.

"You're welcome my Love."

Hermione let out a huff through her nose and placed her chin in her palm as she looked at him lovingly.

"Oh, before I forget."

She stood up unexpectedly and walked over to his bed. He watched as she picked up another envelope he didn't originally see and handed it to him.

"I have a feeling that this is from your mother. I didn't open it. I figured you would want to decide what to do with it."

Draco stared at the parcel in his hand and contemplated throwing it out, but a burning desire to read what his mother wrote plagued his mind. He wasn't going to open it just yet though. He didn't feel ready enough to battle yet another matter.

He sensed Hermione staring at him as he studied the writing on the envelope, so he set it on the bed and looked up at her.

"I can't right now."

"I understand." She smiled softly "When you're ready."

She leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek before climbing into the bed to curl up next to him. He held on to like he normally would at night when they read together and looked up at the ceiling titles.

"So tell me more about Steven's situation." He expressed, squeezing her close to him and placing a tender kiss on the top of her head. "Tell me everything."


	13. Chapter 13- Epilogue

Chapter 13- Epilogue

 **Wednesday January 24** **th** **, 2007 04:11pm**

 _My dear son,_

 _I never thought I would ever have to write something like this to you, but it seems it has become inevitable. I know you are wondering how I was released on bail and where I am; I cannot give you those details, but I can assure you my location will be a safe place hidden far away._

 _You may also have your suspicions that due to certain circumstances I will continue my previous mission to try and destroy your wife. In sheer reality however, I am not, nor will I ever again. The fact of the matter is, this will most likely be the last time you will ever hear from me._

 _I want to begin by first stating that I am not a wicked woman; you know this to be true because you have lived your entire life with me. I raised you to be the intelligent young man you are today. I tried my hardest to protect you from the cruelty of this cold world and for a while, I succeeded. It pains me to say though, that I still made my fair share of mistakes. This biggest of them all is the doubt I held against you and your love for that girl._

 _I will say that I am still disgusted that you chose to be with her; to carry out the remainder of your life with someone who is…was, considered a disgrace to the family name. Please do not think that I am writing to you to demean the wife you have chosen to take, because I am not; nevertheless I will not pretend that I am happy to see her face and name appear on our family tree. No, I am simply writing to you as a final goodbye to my son, my boy, my child._

 _I am not alright with many of the choices you have made in recent years, but it is obvious that there is no changing your mind. You are an adult now, no matter how much I wish you to once again be that small child that would run to me when someone hurt you, or read with me by the fireplace every night before bed; the boy that told me about his aspirations, and comforted me when I was saddened each year you stood on Platform 9 ¾ to return to Hogwarts._

 _But this letter is not for me to reminisce on the past. It is not meant to cause you pain or suffering either, it is meant to bring healing and closure, to both of us._

 _I know half of England is out looking for me, and I perceive that you will join the hunt as well when you return from the US; however I will be long gone by then. I have found a drifter who has set up a, well an unauthorized international portkey for me. I will be leaving the UK and never returning. You and your wife have nothing to fear, at least not from me, any longer._

 _I realize that I have grown too old and too tired of theatrical turmoil instilled in my history and I know for certain that you will no longer allow me back into your life. Your father will never be released from Azkaban, due to his war crimes, and I have finally come to an understanding that I have lost everything I ever held dear. My only hope now is that one day you will forgive me, although my behavior is unforgivable. In the end, the only matter I managed to accomplish with my actions…was losing you._

 _Suffice to say, I will be able to freely live out the remainder of my days outside of that horrid prison; though I have no choice but to try to fight the demons plaguing my mind. I am the one who destroyed my family; I have no one to blame but myself and my attitude towards the woman you care so deeply for. I will not apologize for still resenting Ms. Granger, but I do apologize for the way my animosity was portrayed._

 _Perhaps one day, we can move forward through all of this. I would very much like to meet the grandchildren I know you will have. Half-blood they may be, but blood all the same. I leave everything at your discretion. Just know I am willing to try and change if it means getting my family back. I am not saying that I will accept your wife overnight or even in the next few years however. We both need our space and I think I need to find myself as well; do a bit of soul searching if you will._

 _Until that day arrives though, this will be the last time you will hear from me. I have cleared out half of the family vault, with a bit of help and persuasion, so that I may sustain my lifestyle. Do not fret, I left your vault alone and you will still have access to the remaining family fortune. I have also left our house elf, Maisy, to you. She is finishing her duties in the Manor, but is scheduled to arrive at your flat by the end of the month._

 _If and or when you decided to make amends, Maisy will know how to contact me. Although, she will not be able to give up my location, no matter the lengths you might go to break her. She has sworn an oath, based off loyalty, which cannot be broken unless I give strict permission otherwise. So if you could be so inclined as to not try, I am sure she would very much appreciate it. And please, I beg of you, take good care of her. She was my only comfort after you moved out all those years ago and I have grown quite fond of her._

 _Unfortunately the time has come to conclude this letter; my portkey will be leaving shortly. Remember that a mother's love is eternal Draco, no matter where in the world I might be. I love you my dear sweet son and I do hope one day you will allow me to make things right again. I wish you every happiness, even in this darkened time._

 _Forever and Always; Your mother,_

 _Narcissa Malfoy_

It was the fifth time Draco had read his mother's letter and for the fifth time it still left him astonished; but more so, it left him heartbroken. The thought of never seeing his mother again felt oddly satisfying yet made him feel lost at the same time. At least when she was in Azkaban he had the chance to visit her when he was ready to confront her, but knowing he would no longer have that possibility anymore, weighed on him heavily.

He still was not willing to let her back into his life anytime soon, but in some way knowing he had that opportunity to fix his family on day, gave him a sense of hope.

"Are you okay, Draco?" Hermione asked pleasantly as she sat beside him in the carriage leading up to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Nodding his head, Draco tucked the letter away in his breast pocket and adjusted the stack of papers resting on his lap. The rickety ride up was not boding well for his eight-month pregnant wife and they had to stop a few times for her to regain her strength. He didn't mind though, the excitement of having a baby grew in the months after the Earthquakes and it outweighed the terrifying fear he had of failing as a father.

He had researched everything he could about babies and parenting, he even had a long unexpected conversation with Molly Weasley about the topic. It was strange to say the least, but it helped him greatly; not only with becoming a dad, but the aftermath of everything that had happened to him since San Diego. If only he could have said the same thing about Hermione.

For months after the incident, Hermione became more and more detached from the world. With everything finally coming down on her, from Ron's death to himself getting shot, she officially hit rock bottom. She kept to herself most days, locked in their bedroom only ever to emerge to eat, and even then she often took the meals to the room.

It wasn't until one day right before Halloween, Draco had to commit his wife against her will. A plate fell out of his hands in the kitchen while he was preparing for dinner with Harry and Ginny, making Hermione collapse to the ground and scream in terror. The three of them tried everything they could to calm her down but it was too no avail.

They floo'd her to St. Mungo's where the healers put her on heavy doses of calming droughts combined with a strong sleeping drought, that was safe enough for the baby, to finally knock her out. She then slept for almost 3 days straight and when she woke up she was of sound mind again. They claimed it was due to sever sleep deprivation, along with flashbacks of the gun going off when he dropped the plate, which led to a break down. Apparently all she needed was sleep and he didn't even know.

Draco had had enough of seeing his beautiful wife struggle to get back to normal again and finally told his therapist that they both needed help. It had been a long and difficult process, but the sessions seemed to be working and slowly but surely, he was getting his wife back. She still had a ways to go but she was improving faster than he expected.

As the carriage pulled up to the large front doors of the school, Draco inhaled sharpy before stepping out. After helping Hermione down, he waved off the driver and took the hand of his beautiful glowing wife.

"You ready to do this?" she asked him with a wide smile.

Adjusting his fingers to entwine in hers, he turned his head and warmly smiled back.

"I have never been more ready for anything in my whole life."

"Besides marrying me, right?" she joked.

"I was never ready to marry you. You were too good for me. Still are." He winked before leaning down to place a soft gentle kiss upon her lips.

"If you two are done dilly dallying on the front steps, I would very much like to get along with this meeting." A stern voice of a woman claimed.

Turning his head, Draco looked on at the older woman standing tall with her hands folded neatly in front of her.

"Professor McGonagall" he stated with a head nod.

McGonagall turned her sharp eyes to him.

"That is Headmistress to you, young man." She altered her jaw slightly before her wrinkled cheeks raised and a smile formed on her lips. "It is so good to see you both again…Come, come in" she waved a hand and ushered them into the castle.

As the trio walked the old familiar halls, Draco reminisced on his childhood days. Unfortunately, thoughts of picking on his now wife and making her cry on numerous occasions invaded his memory, making him shake his head in effort to remove the images from his mind.

Kids of all ages rushed passed them after their last class of the day let out, to get ready before dinner, and both he and Hermione had to stifle laughs as Headmistress McGonagall began to berate them for running. It brought back more memories of the elderly woman once yelling at him and his…fraudulent friends.

"Gummy Bears." McGonagall announced in front of the large ugly stone gargoyle.

"Gummy Bears?" Draco chuckled. "I see you kept the candy theme going."

"Dumbledore strictly stated in his Will to keep with the sweets" she smiled softly "I am just simply upholding his last wish."

"Interesting last wish."

"He...He was an interesting man."

The walk up was filled with an awkward silence, but the reticence broke once they made it into the office and the Headmistress took her seat at the large throne-styled chair.

"So…" she began.

"I have the papers right here; everything is in order" Draco interrupted as he took a step closer to the desk. "Kingsley signed off and everything."

"Mr. Malfoy, I understand what this meeting entails and I am sure you have all the proper documentation needed to continue forward, however the paperwork is not my main concern."

"Headmistress?" he raised a perplexed brow.

"It came to my attention many months ago, that you and Mrs. Malfoy here were trapped in a zoo in California; is that correct?"

"Yes ma'am."

"And you were shot by a muggle weapon?" she asked as she looked over her spectacles.

"Y-yes."

"And how are you holding up since then?"

"I-I'm fine."

"Good, very good. And Mrs. Malfoy,"

"Yes?" Hermione looked from Draco to McGonagall in confusion.

"I know the struggles you faced at losing one of your best friends after the terrible atrocities he committed. It is not my place to pry into your personal life, but I must ask; how are you doing?"

"Why are you asking us these questions?" Draco chimed in.

"You two," she paused for a moment as she leaned forward and adjusted the spectacles on her nose "though there was trial and error during sixth and seventh year, you were prized pupils when you attended this school; straight O's since first year. I have grown fairly fond of you and watched as you both achieved great things over the years. I may not have seen either of you since you graduated with top scores in all of your classes after Hogwarts was rebuilt, but I take great pride in knowing that I had a part in helping raise the two of you to be exceptional human beings. I do apologize for the intrusion, Mr. Malfoy, I am not asking to be insensitive to what you both have gone through, I am simply asking because I care."

"I-I'm okay" Hermione muttered after a moment of silence "I'm doing better."

McGonagall smiled warmly and nodded her head slightly before looking back to Draco with an outstretched hand.

"The file please."

"Oh right" Draco stated as he quickly handed the stack of papers over.

"Alright then" she looked up with tenderness after studying each paper meticulously "It seems everything is in order." She straightened out the papers in her hands before putting them back in the folder and handing the file to Draco. "I assume getting the last two signatures needed was not an easy task for you?"

"As a matter of fact Professor, uh- I mean Headmistress, it was actually quite easy." he chortled.

"Oh? Well…You know what; I am not even going to ask."

Headmistress McGonagall might not have wanted to know how he was able to acquire the signatures, but as he smirked and crossed his arms, Draco looked back on that saddened morning and sighed inwardly to himself.

XX

Standing outside a modern size suburban home in East London, Draco waited patiently after ringing the doorbell twice. He thought he would have been more nervous standing on the front porch of Steven and Jason's childhood home, but instead, he felt nothing other than contempt for the people living in that house.

He shuffled through the papers in his hands as his annoyance grew stronger, and once again he rang the doorbell in impatience. Finally, a woman answered the door and he had to refrain from cursing her out.

"Can I help you?" the woman with long dark brown hair replied in a miffed tone.

Draco rolled his eyes before looking at her in distaste.

"I am Draco Malfoy ma'am; you were notified a few days ago that I was coming."

"Oh…Right, alright come in."

Draco let out another eye roll before entering the house he knew he could just burn to the ground in seconds. In fact, he would have if he wasn't determined to get what he needed and leave as quickly as possible.

"I need you to sign these to complete the processes." He claimed as he stepped into the small kitchen.

"I need to wait for my husband." The woman declared in a bitter tone while reaching into the sink to continue the chore he apparently had rudely interrupted.

"And he is where? I would like to get this process done and over with, if you don't mind."

"She minds very much thank you!" a short dark-haired man insisted out of nowhere.

"I'm assuming you're the husband?" Draco questioned while he turned to the archway leading to the living room. "Well if you could just sign these papers I will get out of your hair…"

"I will _sign_ whenever I _damn well_ please!" the man disrupted harshly.

Slowly furrowing his brows as a scowl began to form on his face, Draco smirked slightly as he took a step towards him. The husband backed up with each pressing step as his face fell; he was scared as Draco towered over him and to be quite honest, Draco was elated at the man's fear of him.

"You _will_ sign when I _damn well_ say you will; do you understand me? I do not have the time or the patience to deal with your delays or your fallibility as parents." Draco's hair began to let off small sparks as his magic flared with his anger, but he didn't back down from the cold ruthless gaze he emitted. "You think having a young Wizard in your household is terrifying? Do not test me Mr. Williams, I am not known for being _'the nice guy'_."

"O-o-okay" the man receded as he trembled beneath the heartless stare "W-Where d-do I s-sign?"

Letting off a snarky scoff, Draco stepped back and dropped the folder in his hand on the kitchen island, all without removing his eyes from the terrified man before him.

"By the X's if you will." He stated through a mischievous smirk.

As the couple finished signing the documents, Draco tapped his foot as he looked at his watch in restlessness.

"There, all done." Mr. Williams claimed as he handed the folder over to him.

Snatching the file out of the man's hands, he quickly skimmed through the documents to make sure everything was correct. Lowering the papers in his hands Draco looked on at the trembling couple.

"How could you do this?" he asked in confusion.

"How dare you!" Mrs. Williams proclaimed in anger "You come barging into our home, demand we sign these papers, call us unfit parents, and for what, be-because your ego is so large, because you're-you're rich? You hung around our sons for a few days! You have no idea the pain we are going through! You think you are so high and mighty due to having magic, but you are nothing except an intimidating bully!"

Draco sneered as he looked around the room.

"I didn't barge in here and quite frankly ma'am, you don't know a thing about me."

"I know enough!"

"No, you don't!" he scolded. "Have you ever been through a war, Mrs. Williams? Hmm?" he turned his eyes back to the woman standing close to her husband. "You call me a bully and I was at one point but tell me, have you ever watched in horror as a dark wizard overtook your home, branded you with his mark, made you do things to people who were merely different than you?...You are right about a few thing, my ego is large, I do have more money than your muggle God, and yes at one point thought I had been superior to those I deemed were of lesser blood, beneath me, but _NEVER_ would I have turned my back on those I love most. You know nothing of my life, what I have been through or what I am still going through!"

"You think just because you are a wizard-"

"I don't think anything! For Salazar sake you are infuriating!"

"We lost a son!" Mr. Williams interjected "Don't you have any class or sympathy?"

"I know you lost a son; my wife was there! She did everything she could bring him peace during his suffering. Want to know how she did it? By the very magic you are so scared of! The same magic I used to save your youngest from dying; you know the son you seem to pass off as nothing but a nuisance."

"It's his fault Jason is dead!" Mrs. Williams shouted, forcing Draco to step back as a shockwave of disgust swept over him. "He wanted to go to that stupid Zoo, not Jason! Jason was a good man, a smart man with his whole life ahead of him! He had a real career, not some fantasy job where magic does everything for you!"

"If that is what you think then you are nothing but a daft woman and no better than I was as a boy! You are ignorant to the world you haven't even tried to understand and are blaming a teenager- _a teenager_ for Salazar sake, for the death of your oldest! Bloody hell you are…" Draco stopped yelling and shook his head in disappointment. "You should be ashamed of yourselves. You…you should be ashamed…Steven is a boy who almost died and-and you don't even care. You ship him off to school without even a second look back."

"He is better off at that school" Mr. Williams replied in distaste.

"Merlin's beard," Draco scoffed in astonishment "you are not the only ones who lost someone that day."

"Yes well," Mrs. Williams uttered as she wiped her fingers across her cheek, removing the tears falling from her green eyes. "he is no longer our problem."

"Yeah, I got that…I think everyone got that."

Draco once again shook his head in discontent before turning on his heels and began walking towards the front door. He stopped however with his hand resting on the handle and shifted his body back to face the couple behind him.

"So much of life is vague and uncertain, but _regrets…regrets are_ pretty distinct. He is just a kid. You're supposed to be the ones protecting him not some school, or professors, or even me. His magic didn't change who he was or who you raised him to be. He needed his parents during the roughest time of his life and you just…" he bit his bottom lip as he shook his head slightly "you just abandoned him, because he was different. One day, you are going to wake up and realize that you missed out on how special he really is. One day, you are going to wake up, and you are going to miss him; and I hope that regret eats away at you every chance it gets... Steve wasn't just some inconvenient flat mate with the ability to fly on a broom or turn a rat into a goblet, he was your son…He was your son _too_."

With that said, Draco opened the door, stepped out on to the front porch, and disapparated away.

XX

"The students should be down in the Great Hall for dinner by now." McGonagall proclaimed as the group made their way down the long corridors. "I think it is best if the news comes from you two instead of from myself. It should come from someone he trusts and I think your presence… I think it will help him."

"Help him?" Hermione asked as she rubbed her overly large belly.

"Yes, my dear. Poor Steven has had a hard time adjusting this term; since the death of his brother over the summer, some children, well, let's just say they have not been to kind to him. I am ashamed to admit, but even my own house has been the cause of some bullying towards the young man; including members of his own house as well."

"What do you mean? Why would anyone pick on him?" Hermione stopped walking and looked at their old professor in shock and confusion. "He just lost his brother."

The Headmistress turned on her heels and relaxed her shoulders while letting off a small sigh.

"The other students don't seem to believe his claims that he has meet, let alone survived earthquakes, with the two of you. They believe it to be a farce, a fabricated story to get him attention and dare I say, cope with the death of his elder brother. "

"Well that is just absurd!"

"Hermione, love," Draco rested a hand on her upper back and began rubbing in circles "Don't stress, alright? It is not good for you or the baby."

"But Draco…"

"But nothing" he smiled amicably. "We are just going to have to prove to them that they are wrong."

"I couldn't agree more" McGonagall cordially smirked. "Shall we?"

The group continued their trek to the Great Hall and stopped just short of the enormously broad doors leading in.

"Now," McGonagall began "The faculty has been notified of your visit and I do know most, if not all, will want to speak with you, so I have arranged a meeting after dinner if you have time to say hello. Hagrid was especially excited when hearing that you were coming today Mrs. Malfoy."

"Of course! I would love to see him again!" Hermione beamed.

"Splendid…One more thing, I want to advise you that none of the students know you are coming. They think a guest is here to simply give a speech about house unity. The staff has done a phenomenal job at keeping the students in the dark as to whom may be delivering the speech."

"Got it" Draco stated.

McGonagall raised a brow as she looked him up and down.

"And Mr. Malfoy, no hexing the children. They may be young and ignorant, but they are still students, and transfiguring them is still prohibited in this school. I know your temper. We do not need another repeat of your fourth year, do you hear me?"

Draco let out a chuckle as he took Hermione's hand.

"Awe that's no fun at all, I should be able to share my experience as a ferret with others." Hermione playfully smacked him in the arm "Fine, you have my word Headmistress. No hexing."

She skeptically eyed him over before giving a friendly smirk and turned to open the doors.

The Great Hall fell silent as the trio walked down the long path between the trestle tables. The staff at the front gleamed in happiness as the glow from the flickering floating candles radiated off their faces. Hermione squeezed Draco's hand tighter, causing him to grin down at her. She pointed up to the ceiling and just as if it was their first year all over again, he saw it dotted with stars of the night sky.

"Bloody hell, that's Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger!" he heard a male student say over the quiet den.

"She is Hermione Malfoy now" a female Ravenclaw chimed in. "Gosh don't any of you read?"

"Hey Williams!" a Gryffindor boy shouted out "Look, it's the couple you are so desperate to get near, you had to make up stories about meeting them! Should I get you an autograph when this is all over? I'm sure if I ask nicely I could get you Potters as well!" he laughed mischievously, causing Draco to seethe with anger.

"Stay calm, Draco." Hermione whispered as the chattering between everyone grew louder "The stress is not good for me or the baby." she murmured with a chuckle.

"Don't use my words against me, woman." He whispered back through gritted teeth. "Besides, hexing the lot of them would help my stress, not make it worse."

"I have no doubts," she giggled. "Let's just get through this and prove to them how amazing Steve really is, okay?"

"Fine, but I hope our words make them look as ridiculous as possible."

Making it to the front of the hall, Draco helped his pregnant wife up the stairs. They stood off to the left side of the podium while the Headmistress took her place in front of everyone.

"May I have your attention please." The room fell quite in the respect of McGonagall and Draco began to scan the Hall.

His eyes landed on Steven in the center of the Slytherin table near the grand fireplace against the far wall. He looked sad and defeated as his fellow housemates poked and whispered in his ear. He tried to get the boys attention without alerting the rest of the students but Steven refused to look up from staring at the empty plate in front of him.

The Headmistress finished her lecture and introduced the couple. The hall broke out in a round of applause as Hermione and Draco made their way to the podium and it made Draco want to roll his eyes. He wondered how the kids were able to praise him for the deeds he had overcome in his life but still had the nerve to torment one of their own. It infuriated him to no end however he was steadfast in showing them how wrong they all were about the muggle-born boy.

"Good evening students." Hermione smile widely as she greeted the hall.

"Good evening Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy." the children replied in unison.

"As you now know my husband and I are here to talk to you about House Unity. You all know our history and you all are aware of the animosity we have both held for each other for a long while. We are not here to tell you to forgive your worst enemy or to even talk to them. We are here to simply show you that it is possible for two houses once at war with each other can share common ground. Draco and I are proof of that. We used to do awful things to each other growing up and we used to think the worst of one another. It wasn't until one day, something clicked for both of us."

"We realized we had a thing for each other" Draco added and the hall let off small laughs. "Look, we could stand up here all day and tell you about how you should get along and that you might not know the whole story of the person sitting next you, but it won't do you any good."

"It won't change anything unless you yourself are willing to change" Hermione joined in. "Draco and I…we have been though a lot in our lives but we never really got to know each other until we were pushed passed our breaking point."

Draco placed a hand on the small of Hermione's back and he looked down on her with a smile.

"We have suffered through a war," he raised his eyes back to the crowd "we have lived through tornadoes, and we have endured the loss of a few friends along the way."

"As you may have heard, over the summer my husband and I battled through earthquakes in the United States. However, the quakes were not what almost tore us apart. I had found out only days before that I was pregnant and…"

"And I didn't take the news very well. We fought yes, but it wasn't ourselves that got us through it…We are not actually here to talk to you about House Unity." Draco admitted while taking in a deep breath "We are here because we want to thank the person, and his brother, for saving not only our lives, but our marriage as well."

Steven's head slowly raised as his eyes began to mist.

"Steven Williams," Hermione announced "If you could please come up here."

Steven looked around the shocked Hall as every student gazed upon him with their mouths agape.

"Come on, don't be shy."

The Slytherin boy began to stand up as the Great Hall became speechless. He walked to the front and as soon as he did, Hermione pulled him into a grand hug.

"If it wasn't for this man, I don't know if I would have ever accepted the child my wife carries. He showed me what it is like to have a family and that I wasn't going to end up like my father. He instilled the thought of being a better person in me. His muggle brother gave his life to save my wife from a Mountain Lion and I personally, want to make sure they both get the thanks they deserve."

Hermione pulled back from the hug. Her eyes watered as she smiled proudly at the teen standing before her and Draco knew then, they had made the right decision.

"Draco and I are honored to be in your presence Steve. And we want to honor your brother for the sacrifice he made."

Hermione turned to Draco and held out her hand. Draco pulled out a document from the file he was holding and handed it over to her. She turned back around with a large grin upon her features.

"This is a certified affidavit, signed by the Minister and paid for by myself and Draco."

"W-what is this?" Steven asked as the certificate in his hands shook.

"Well, Draco has told me before that he has so much money he doesn't know what to do with it, and seeing as I have no need for a boat," she turned and winked at him "We have chosen to spend our money where it is needed most. We call it The Jason Williams Foundation; it will provide funding to research in all magical and non-magical hospitals around the world...We have also decided to donate 50 million Galleons to the hospital of your choice. It can be converted to muggle money if you wish to donate outside of our world as well."

"I-I-I" Steven stuttered through his shock as the rest of the crowd began to murmur to each other.

"That is not all Mr. Williams." Draco added as he stepped up to the boy. "We both know your life at home is not…well it's not ideal. We have spoken to the Ministry and Auror Potter on ways that we can change things and help you. Hermione was actually the one to suggest it and I for one am not going to say no to her" he chuckled.

Draco handed over the file to Steven before kneeling down and rested an elbow on his own thigh.

"You have shown me the true meaning of family Steve. You have provided me with the ability to accept that I can be a good man and that I am nothing like the father I grew up with. I have thought for a long while, that I had everything I needed in life to be happy. I was wrong; you proved me wrong. It took spending a whole day with you and almost losing you to a rattlesnake to realize what I was missing."

"I-I don't understand." Steven muttered softly as he looked down at Draco.

"Our family," Hermione pipped in "isn't whole yet."

He raised his eyes to Hermione in confusion before looking back down at Draco.

"We want you to complete our family Steve." Draco added. "We want you to be our son…These papers, they give us permission to adopt you, and all you have to say, is yes."

The Great Hall fell to silence as everyone waited for Steven to reply. One could hear a pin drop at the absence of sound in the room. The stillness in the air was deafening as Draco and Hermione Malfoy looked on at the boy in front of them with love and an open heart.

"Oy for Merlin's sake, say yes my boy!" Hagrid shouted out while standing up.

Tears began to trickle down the Slytherin's cheeks as he rushed into Draco's arms; almost knocking him over in the process. Draco wrapped his arms around the boy and held onto him tightly refusing to ever let him go again.

"I'll take that as a yes." He exclaimed with an immense smile resting on his lips.

The Great Hall erupted in cheers as Draco stood up while still hugging the boy in his arms. Nothing compared to the happiness of his wedding day, but he was sure without a doubt, that this day, came pretty damn close.

XX

 **Saturday June 30th, 2007 09:00am**

The crowd on Platform 9 ¾ was much larger than Draco had remembered. However, the last time he waited for the Hogwarts Express to arrive, was in sixth year and he didn't pay much attention to anything other than his dreadful task that year. But as he shifted his weight from foot to foot nervously, he began to think back on the good times he once had on the terrace.

"Draco, can you take Scorpius for a minute? I just need to get his dragon toy out of my bag."

"Is he getting fussy?" He asked as he took his son from Hermione.

"No, I just want to make sure he is in a good mood for when Steve finally sees him. He hasn't stopped talking about how excited he is to meet his little brother."

Draco let out a small laugh while he cradled Scorpius closer to his chest.

"Nothing will beat how excited I was when I first met him though" he smiled widely as he looked down at the baby in his arms. "Who knew I could love someone so much. I mean don't get me wrong love, " he looked up at his wife as she pulled the small stuffed dragon out of her bag and handed it over to him "I love you to death but..."

"It's a different kind of love" She grinned "and trust me, I completely understand…but let's not forget how you almost fainted in the delivery room from your 'excitement'." She snickered.

Draco stepped back in shock with his mouth gaped open.

"I did _not_ faint!"

"Oh, okay," she giggled "so Ginny having to catch you when I started pushing was a figment of my imagination?" she tilted her head and smirked.

"I-I was dehydrated!"

"Riiigght…Whatever helps you sleep at night."

Hermione leaned in and pecked him on the lips before taking a hold of the stroller and maneuvered down the platform as the train approached.

"I WAS DEHYDRATED!" he shouted out above the noise of the station, but she waved him off with a laugh and kept walking.

Letting out a huff, Draco looked down at his son in defeat.

"Don't listen to her, I was dehydrated; I didn't faint."

Scorpius eyed him lovingly before yawning widely and peered around the room uninterested.

"You are no help." He rolled his eyes. "I love you, but you are no help at all."

Draco sighed before making his way over to Hermione. He set his son in the stroller just as he heard a young teen call out to them.

"Hermione! Draco!" Steven yelled in excitement as he ran through the mass of people towards them "I-I can't believe you're really here! Is this Scorpius? Merlin's beard he's adorable!" he grinned from ear to ear as he looked at everyone in elation.

"It is" Hermione smiled as she glanced down at the baby who was cooing in happiness.

"Come here squirt. How was the rest of your school year?" Draco announced as he pulled Steven into a hug.

"It was great…I-I don't get picked on anymore." he beamed.

"That is wonderful news. We can't wait to hear all about it! The Potter's and the Weasley's are eager to meet you by the way. Harry in particular is excited to see you." Hermione stated gleefully as she walked over to hug the boy.

"Really? So…So this is actually happening? That whole thing in January wasn't just to get everyone off my back?"

"What?" Draco questioned in surprise "Why wo-"

"It is really happening." Hermione cut in "You never have to go back to that house again. Not if you don't want to."

Steven relaxed his shoulders as he looked down at Scorpius in awe.

"My parents never wanted me. I was just an accident."

"Don't say that." Draco stated as he narrowed his brows in bewilderment.

"It's true" Steven looked back up at them "They told me themselves, on numerous occasions. Jason was their 'golden child'. They used the fear of magic as an excuse to hate me more. They never loved me."

"We love you" Hermione chimed in as she rested a hand on Steven cheek. "And we are going to make sure you know that…every day." She smiled softly.

"SEE YOU NEXT YEAR STEVE!" a boy interrupted as he ran passed them with his family "DON'T FORGET TO WRITE! EXPECT AN OWL FROM ME IN THE NEXT WEEK OR SO!"

Draco watched as the boy continued down the platform and grinned when he turned to see Steven looking happy while waving back.

"Who was that?" his wife asked pleasantly.

"That's Daniel…Danny." Steven claimed joyfully

"A real friend, I hope?" Draco question as he crossed his arms; knowing some people would only befriend the Slytherin teen due to his new found fame.

"He has been the only one nice to me since before…well before school started." he shrugged.

"Ah" Draco stated as he clicked his tongue on the roof of his mouth.

"Well you must invite him to dinner one day; after you get settled in." Hermione declared.

"But for now," Draco rested his hand on the boys shoulder and looked at his new son with pride "Let's…go home."

Steven faintly grinned as Draco took his trunk and Hermione reached for the teen's hand.

As the group began walking down the platform ahead of him, Draco recalled all the events that led him to this very happy moment in time. It still amazed him that he was not only able to obtain the love of his life and have her love him back just as much, but to also have children with her and loved every second of it; it absolutely blew his mind.

He had thought for the longest time that he would fail at anything other than his own misery, but as he watched his wife and two sons walk down the station that held so many memories, he smiled blissfully aloud. Because he now knew...this is where he was always supposed to be.

"Draco darling, are you coming?" Hermione asked as the group stopped a few feet in front of him; snapping him out of his trance.

Biting his lower lip, Draco smirked and nodded his head before moving to catch up; and for the first time in the crazy adventure he called life, he left every fear, every concern, and every doubt, behind him...He was finally ready to take on the world, with his family faithfully at his side.

 **The End.**


End file.
